FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Former Fresno Police Chief Ed Winchester has died.<\/p>\n
Winchester led the department from 1993 to 2001.<\/p>\n
He leaves behind his wife, three daughters and multiple grandchildren.<\/p>\n
Mayor Jerry Dyer, who took over Winchester’s role, said in a statement that he “was a one-of-a-kind police chief who was tough on crime but had a heart of gold.”<\/p>\n
Winchester’s final years as Fresno’s top cop were tumultuous. Explosives were stolen from a department bunker, drugs and more than $100,000 went missing from evidence lockup, and an officer in the department was convicted of manslaughter.<\/p>\n
Still, Dyer credited Winchester for the city’s violent crime reductions in the mid-1990s.<\/p>\n
Flags will be flown at half-staff at Fresno City Hall and the Fresno Police Department for the next week to honor Winchester.<\/p>\n
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