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Coffee with a Cop a success in Leeton
By Talia Pattison, The Irrigator
HEARING from the very people they serve has proven fruitful for Leeton police.
Officers were out and about on Tuesday morning chatting with residents, school children and community groups and the word on the street was mostly the same.
“People want to see more of a police presence in places like the main street, at night time and they want there to be more accessibility,” Chief Inspector John Wadsworth said. “When people present to the police station they want it to be open and be able to speak to an officer there.
“Various people had a lot of issues they wanted to discuss, which was great.
“Late-night vandalism was one of the issues raised as well.”
Chief Inspector Wadsworth is now the man in charge of the Leeton and Narrandera area thanks to the Murrumbidgee Police District now being in place.
He wants the community to know he will be in Leeton from 8am to 5pm most days of the working week, apart from when he is in Narrandera.
“I’ve told people as the officer in charge of Leeton with responsibility in Narrandera they can come and see me,” the Chief Inspector said.
“I encourage people if they have an issue they want to discuss with police, I’m the one they should come and see.
“Availability of the police is something we need to work on. However, thanks to the new police district that is now set up, when there’s a need we can be shuffling officers around to where they are needed.
“If we need extra police out here, they can be redeployed where necessary.”
Leeton, like many other communities in regional areas, faces a number of challenges when it comes to crime.
Domestic violence, alcohol-related crime and drugs continue to be the three biggest areas causing concern for police in Leeton.
“Domestic violence is always a major issue in our community,” Chief Inspector Wadsworth said.
“It’s the same across the board though. There’s being a lot done to address these areas though.
“You will see a lot more search warrants being carried out (relating to drug crime). There’s been many successful ones already.
“This will be continued.”
Chief Inspector Wadsworth sees many strengths within the Leeton police force, with many having served in the community for some time.
Acting Sergeant Tracy Fletcher was born and bred in Leeton. “They are part of the community,” Chief Inspector Wadsworth said.
“It shows you how much we all like our district here. It’s good for me to have this challenge with Leeton and Narrandera. There’s so much we can do out here.”
