A FORMER policeman has been made the leader of a Freemasons' lodge.
Ex-CID officer Keith Roberts, who has been a Freemason for 14 years, is the new Worshipful Master of the 130-year-old Handyside Lodge of Freemasons, in Saltburn.
Mr Roberts was a detective at Stockton CID before becoming a force instructor on police computer systems at Cleveland Police headquarters, in Middlesbrough.
The Freemasons are pursuing a policy of more openness about their organisation and ceremonials.
Mr Roberts, a grandfather, who was installed recently at the masonic hall, on the seafront, said: "I fully support the move towards more openness by masons.
"Freemasonry is the biggest donor to charities in the UK after the National Lottery, and for too long we have been accused of being a secret society."
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