A FORMER undercover police officer has put pen to paper to write a crime thriller based on his experiences.

Ex-Detective Inspector Roger Price, who worked on Lancashire Police’s Operation Nimrod which targeted drug dealers across East Lancashire, said he was excited to have released his first book, entitled By Their Rules.

It tells the story of a ruthless mastermind from Africa, who has surfaced in gangland, carrying out his darkest deeds in the murky grey shadows of London's back streets.

Roger, 55, who retired in 2008 after a 31-year career in the police force, which started in Accrington, said: “Writing a novel is something I always wanted to do.It has been a long slog, but an enjoyable one too.

“I went to night classes and got a bit of training in how to structure a novel, because we tend to write as we speak.

“But once I got that bit right, it took me about a year to write the novel and another year to find a publisher.”

By Their Rules follows the multiple slaughter of a number of policemen, and protagonists Lee and Burrows form a team of experienced investigators who become dedicated to the eradication of the killer.

The book is published by Elliot MacKenzie Publisher Ltd and is available to buy now.

And father-of-two Roger, who now lives in Walmer Bridge, near Preston, added that he was hoping to be able to release a sequel called Snatched soon.

He said: “By Their Rules has already got one or two good reviews, so it is starting to get known.

“There is a sequel on its way.

I am almost finished with the first draft so hopefully it will be out soon.”