Mid West police stations welcome new faces

Two Mid West police stations have this month welcomed new officers-in-charge, and both have revealed they have big plans for the communities they now call home.

Sergeant Chris Martin replaced Sergeant Ron Pace as the officer-in-charge at Mullewa Police Station after an 18-month stint at Geraldton.

Sgt Martin, who previously served at Mullewa as a constable between 2010 and 2014, said he was delighted to be back.

“I’ve spent my happiest years at Mullewa Police Station and I know this community well,” he said.

“I know the issues that affect the town here, the concerns of the stakeholders and the local people.

“They’re aware of my expectations and that the line that is not to be crossed with me — because I’m very much a person who will take the lead, get on the front foot and deal with issues straight away.”

Sgt Martin said one of his main goals was to divert local youth away from crime. “We’ve had juveniles committing serious offences such as burglaries, theft of motor vehicles, engaging in antisocial behaviour and assaults,” he said.

“We want to tackle drug use as best we can, because that’s often an indicator of other crimes within the community. We also want to do our bit to combat road fatalities in WA on the stretch of highway between Mullewa and Geraldton.”

Sgt Martin said he felt a personal obligation to Mullewa and hoped to improve its reputation.

“I want to fight the fear that this community isn’t safe and it’s not a good place to work and live — because it’s a fantastic place to live and a fantastic place to raise a family,” he said.

Meanwhile, Jurien Bay Police Station welcomed new boss Sergeant Drew Taylor, who transferred after two years at Derby.

Sgt Taylor said his first objective was to continue the work former officer-in-charge Sgt Mark Marriot had done to fight drugs in Jurien Bay. He said he wanted himself and other officers to become fully immersed in the community.

“We’ve had two of the guys recently join up to the Volunteer Bushfire Brigade and one of the guys is involved with the Jurien Bay Volunteer Marine Rescue Group,” Sgt Taylor said.

“I’ve been a volunteer firefighter before and I’ve been vice-president of a couple of sea rescue groups before.

“I also want to have good inter-agency workings between the other government departments and the volunteers around town.”