Police and public´s awards for bravery

By Warren Wilkins 25th July 2018

POLICE officers and members of the public in Newquay have received awards for bravery, their investigative skills, commitment and good work.

PC Simon Andrews, lifeboat crewman Pete Harrison and Dive Newquay owner James Taylor were among the recipients at the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Commander awards ceremony held at County Hall in Truro.

PC Simon Andrews received a Chief Superintendent’s Commendation after responding to calls a woman was on the train track at Newquay. She was found hanging over the railings at the top of the 100-foot viaduct.

PC Andrews acted quickly and grabbed hold of the woman and, after a brief struggle, managed to pull her to safety. The split-second decision almost certainly saved her life. 
Lifeboat crewman Pete Harrison and Dive Newquay owner James Taylor received Good Citizenship Awards for the part they played finding a missing person in October 2017. There had been an extensive search of the Newquay bay area by police, lifeboat and coastguard teams but only a few items of clothing were found.

Pete and James were carrying out a shallow dive the next morning when they discovered a body weighted down by a laden rucksack on the seabed. They marked the location and informed the police.

Pete and James returned to the spot and with the assistance of Newquay lifeboat, they returned to the spot managed to recover the body after a lengthy underwater operation with the police. The pair showed outstanding initiative in locating the missing person and worked in partnership with the police giving their time and skills to assist in a very challenging environment.

Mr Andrews, Mr Harrison and Mr Taylor were awarded honours alongside many other people from across the county including Detective Sergeant Allen Jordan who was bestowed Officer of the Year for performing his job with distinction. He has led his team to many notable successes securing significant convictions for offences ranging from burglary to drugs supply and, as deputy senior investigating officer, for an armed robbery of a jewellers in Truro when £1m worth of jewellery was stolen. DS Jordan represented the force at an international meeting in The Hague as part of the investigation which culminated in eight members of an international organised crime gang being charged with robbery.

Chief Superintendent James Pearce, the Commander for the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly police area, said: “I am very proud and privileged to have these officers working here in Cornwall.

“The recipients of these awards are just some examples of how much good work goes on by police from across the area. I would like to thank all my officers and staff for the incredible good work they do for the good of the local community. I would also like to thank the local community for the invaluable support they give to the police.”