Acting Inspector Mark Cini, Sergeant Josh Kelly and Weipa officer in charge Senior Sergeant Warren Flegg with new local police Constable Michael Madden, Constable Scot Winkworth, Constable Georgia Iddon, Constable Alex Burrell, Constable Orley Fenelon, Constable Roy Blain and Constable Mat Clark. Photo: Cape York Weekly.
Don’t be surprised if you see some new faces in uniform around Weipa over the coming weeks.
Seven additional constables have been posted to the local police station for periods ranging from 12-24 months to bolster Weipa’s thin blue line and experience everything policing in one of the remotest parts of Queensland has to offer.
For Constable Georgia Iddon, the posting meant experiencing the state’s far north and the sense of community spirit remote townships like Weipa are renowned for.
“I’d never been this far north before,” she said.
“Before this was Cairns, so I just thought I’d try something rural, try something fun; it’s not every day you get to come out this far up in North Queensland.
“Weipa’s good; you see everyone, and you get to go down to the pub, do the trivia, and go to things like the Fishing Classic; we’ve been going to the Stars foundation at [Western Cape College] – we just go there and hang out with the girls.”
After graduating in May 2024 and spending his first 12 months in uniform in Cairns, Constable Roy Blain said he was enjoying the challenges and unique experiences Cape York’s geography offered up.
“It’s been good meeting everyone,” he said.
“You get to learn about all the offroad tracks and stuff like that, so it’s different to policing in Cairns; it’s a good difference up here.
“Yesterday, we were up at Mapoon and got bogged in the car, but there was no problem; it’s something different and a bit of fun.”
Weipa officer in charge Senior Sergeant Warren Flegg said the new constables were a welcome addition to the team, adding he believed the Cape York posting would help them become better police.
“It’s so much of a difference to policing communities, and that’s where you learn about people, communication styles and community living,” he said.
“It’s my belief you become a better police officer by coming to these locations, because you do develop different sets of skills, not only the policing sense, but also management types of things as well.
“You learn so much; you’ve either got the resources or you don’t, and you make do and you can manage things so much better.
“For the more serious stuff as well, they get that ability to do it; it’s not a case of having a large CIB (Criminal Investigation Branch) unit here competing for offences.
“When we see people at their worst, we’re actually dealing with it, and they’re getting that, and gaining that experience.”
Senior Sergeant Flegg added there was a chance the additional boots on the ground meant Weipa could soon have a 24-hour rostering.
“We’re reviewing our rosters,” he told Cape York Weekly.
“Obviously, now we’ve got more resources here, we are looking at changing our rosters to suit.”
