Dec 22 - GDP Officer Retires After 31 Years
A member of the Gibraltar Defence Police recently retired from the force, with over 31 years of loyal service to the Ministry of Defence.
PC 146 Steven Vinent joined the force in 1986. He started his career in the RAF division before moving to the operational department. Over the years Steven has seen major changes in the force and, because of this, he was nominated to be a part of the Training and Criminal Investigation Department team.
During his career, Steven attended a Public Order Tactical Training Instructors Course in Manchester and also attended a conversion course into the Criminal Procedures and Evidence Act. He has lectured on both of these topics, as well as keeping abreast with on-going criminal investigations. To top it all off, Steven also found time to be the designated Building Custodian, Exhibits Officer, Security Officer for the force, Fleet Manager and Training co-ordinator.
Further restructuring within the force saw Steven spend his last few years of service as shift duty controller, again always looking at ways and means of improving working practices and offering advice to the younger and less experienced officers.
Looking back at his career, Steven said: “After over 31 years of service I will definitely miss my colleagues and the good times that I shared with them. There has also been challenging times and I take pride in saying that I have been involved in high profile incidents”.
He added: “I encourage the younger generation to pursue a career in Policing as it is a rewarding and challenging profession, encountering different situations on a daily basis”.
The Chief Police Officer of the Gibraltar Defence Police, Chief Superintendent Rob Allen said: ““A superb and dedicated Police Officer, demonstrating his ability to perform outstanding commitment in all departments that he has served. Steven represents everything that is good about the GDP. I am sorry to see him go and I wish him a long and happy retirement with his family”.
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