Incident
On Friday 10th of January 1964, DS Graham was on duty with his colleagues when he was made aware that local officers had found a stolen car in Springhead Road, Allanton, near the Miners Welfare Hall.
He and his colleagues kept a watch on the stolen vehicle as it was thought that it had been used to bring patrons to the weekly dance held in the hall.
After the dance finished and the hall was closing, two youths were seen approaching the car. The officers approached them and apprehended one but the other ran off, with officers giving chase.
DS Graham caught up with him and a struggle ensued. Both fell to the ground and William dislocated his shoulder, in which he already had a recurring complaint.
After taking the arrested men to Bellshill police office, William received hospital treatment for his shoulder injury. Afterwards, he returned home to his police house in Bankhead Road, Rutherglen where, about 5:00am, William got out of bed, collapsed and immediately died of a heart attack.
He was survived by his wife and their two children and he is buried at Carstairs Cemetery.
William joined Lanarkshire Constabulary in 1953 and was posted to Shotts. He was later appointed to the CID. In 1960 he was transferred to the Regional Crime Squad based in Glasgow, which covered the West and Central Scotland. In December 1963 William was promoted to Detective Sergeant and returned to Lanarkshire Constabulary where he was posted to the Anti-Crime Squad, based in Hamilton.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and their two children and he is buried at Carstairs Cemetery.
In Our Keeping
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BO-GB-LAC-B3CCD091- Stewardship
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- April 8, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Detective Sergeant Graham served with the Lanarkshire Constabulary.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Detective Sergeant Graham.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Detective Sergeant William Graham is one of 2,974 officers lost to illness connected to their service across the full record of this memorial — 9.1% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In SCT, 109 of 308 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 35.4% of this state's fallen. That is 26.3 percentage points above the national rate of 9.1%.
At Lanarkshire Constabulary, 7 of 17 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 41.2% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William Graham's cause is highlighted.
How William Graham Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. William Graham is highlighted in Jan.
Others Who Wore This Badge
16 officers from Lanarkshire Constabulary are honored on badge.nw.



