Lehigh County police chiefs honor detectives for their work
Three Lehigh County detectives and a Bethlehem police detective have been honored by the county police chiefs association for their service.
Bethlehem Det. Emily Falko was also named Police Officer of the Year during a ceremony held Nov. 15 at DeSales University.
Lehigh County Detectives Timothy S. Salgado, James F. Bruchak and Gail M. Struss received Col. John K. Schafer Memorial Awards from District Attorney Jim Martin. The awards had been delayed several years due to the pandemic, according to a news release.
Falko, who was nominated by Bethlehem police Chief Michelle Kott and Falko’s supervisor, Lt. Michael DiLuzio, detailed her work, which included investigating a 2020 homicide and cases involving sexual abuse of children.
“She continues her excellent work investigating crimes against children,” DiLuzio said in nominating Falko. “I can’t emphasize enough what an asset Detective Falko is to the Criminal Investigations Division.
“She has a unique skill set, an uncanny determination and an attention to detail that makes her an excellent detective, regardless of the crime she is investigating.”
Salgado and Struss are former Allentown police officers. Salgado worked at the department from 1984 through 2005 as a patrolman, detective, lieutenant and captain.
He joined the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office in 2008 and works as a detective with the Homicide Task Force, which responds to every homicide that occurs within the county.
Struss, who also previously worked for Lehigh County Adult Probation, retired from the Allentown police in 2020. She worked as a detective, school resource officer, hostage negotiator, defensive tactics instructor and eventually rose to assistant chief before her retirement. She works in the district attorney’s Domestic Violence Unit. She earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Shippensburg University.
Bruchak, who works on the Homicide Task Force, formerly was with the Pennsylvania State Police, starting as a trooper and rising to supervisor of the Troop M Criminal division in the Lehigh Valley. He retired from the state police in 2016 after 22 years.
The John K. Schafer Award is named in honor of a former Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner who had a 23-year career with state police, part of it with Troop M in Bethlehem. Schafer became commissioner in 1987, but his tenure was cut short by his death from cancer later that year.
The Northampton County Police Chiefs Association honored three Colonial Regional police officers earlier this month for their actions in helping to save the life of Michael Carden in 2019. Recognized were Sgt. George Cuchran and officers Matthew Antonucci and Christopher Templeton.
Michael, now 8, lost his left leg when it became entangled in the blades of a riding lawnmower in Lower Nazareth Township.