SLEDGEHAMMER ATTACK HERO HONOURED:
Just rewards in police approval
WHILE an aggressive jobseeker allegedly swung a sledgehammer inside Geelong employment provider St Laurence, the welfare of his colleagues was at the front of Jaime Munoz’s mind.
Determined to prevent his colleagues from entering the path of the man’s rage, Mr Munoz listened to his demands and diverted attention away from his colleagues.
“I didn’t know where my colleagues were so I engaged with the man to keep him away from them. To tell you the truth, I felt sorry for the man,” Mr Munoz told the Geelong Advertiser after re- ceiving a police commendation yesterday.
Mr Munoz said the man busted through a security door at the Ryrie St business on February 9 after repeatedly smashing it with the sledgehammer.
“All of a sudden I saw him hitting a security door and bang it was open,” he said.
Using a chair as a makeshift barrier, Mr Munoz calmed the man as he waited for police to arrive.
“It took police five or six minutes to get there but to me it seemed like an hour,” he said.
Mr Munoz, two other members of the public and more than 80 police officers were among recipients of police awards and medals yesterday.
Winchelsea Senior Constable Paul Bowden, a police officer for nine years, received an ambulance commendation for performing first aid on the victim of a serious car crash earlier this year.
Constable Bowden worked on the man in his 60s at the Princes Highway accident scene for 30 minutes before MICA paramedics arrived.
“I was trying to get his heart going. He wasn’t conscious or breathing and didn’t have a pulse,” Constable Bowden said.
A day after the accident, Constable Bowden was told the man had died — but he remains proud of his efforts.
“It does affect me sometimes but I did all I could to save him,” he said.
Four Geelong police officers also received awards for work on Operation Rehangs — expected to put a significant dent in the region’s commercial drug trafficking.
Geelong Sergeant Adam Betson and Anglesea Leading Senior Constable Trevor Purcell received awards for 35 years of service.
Geelong Superintendent Craig Gillard said that the awards were recognition of the complexities of a police officer’s duties.
“This is a tremendous opportunity to recognise the work of our officers, sometimes in adverse conditions, and service not only to Victoria Police but the wider community,” Supt Gillard said.