Police reward bravery in Barnet

Thirty-nine police officers, commanders, PCSOs, residents and security personnel attended a ceremony at the Metropolitan Sports Club, in Aldenham Road, Bushey, on June 20 to receive commendation certificates for their courage.

Twenty-seven-year-old Alex Alaka had been a PCSO for under a year when he chased and detained three suspects in a knifepoint robbery near Golders Green bus station on January 26.

He said: "You just go out there, do your work, go with the flow and fall back on your training. You are always told in training that you are never by yourself, you always have support, so all you have to do is take things calmly."

Police constable Holly Brand was one of ten officers to put her life at risk after a runaway transit van rammed a number of police cars and ran over two of her colleagues in Mill Hill last July.

She said: "I was just doing my job. When someone starts ramming your colleagues and their life is in danger, you don't think about it.

"My first instinct at the time, though everything hurt and was in shock, was to get onto the radio and tell everyone what happened."

Police sergeants Philip Taylor, 35, and Meredydd Jones, 38, fought off a swarm of wasps to successfully rescue an 11-week baby from its hysterical mother at her home in Friern Barnet last July.

Mr Taylor said: "You don't really think about these things until they are over, but you do get a sense of satisfaction afterwards. There is no such thing as a right decision, only the best decision in the circumstances, and luckily on this occasion we had a successful outcome."

Presenting the awards, Chief Superintendant Stephen Kavanagh, borough commander, said: "The pride I feel at being borough commander for Barnet is immense.

"This is an age in which bureaucrats feel they can measure anything and everything that the police is about. But they don't measure heart, passion, commitment, nobility of cause.

"Every single one of these people has all these things. When others could have stepped away, they stepped up to the mark."

Barnet Mayor John Marshall said he was "humbled" by the occasion.

"Today I have witnessed a number of occasions of real courage by unarmed people dealing with people who are armed," he said.

"I always think of the power of positive thinking: how incredible it is to persuade someone to drop a meatcleaver just by the power of thought.

"The quality of these officers, and everyone in the service, is huge."

Mr Marshall also used the opportunity to condemn "inadequate" sentences given to serious offenders.

He said: "We are meant to be having a war on knives, but here we have heard about two people involved in serious knife crimes being sent to jail for 14 days, which makes the law a laughing stock."

The following people were awarded certificates of commendation:

• Brian Marsh, for outstanding contribution to Neighbourhood Watch and commitment to community policing in Barnet
• PCSO Mario Edouard-Betsy and PCSO Osman Bolukbasi, for diligence and initiative leading to the arrest of a male for two knife-point robberies
• Detective Constable Liz Clements, for professionalism, diligence and investigative ability during a complex financial investigation
• Police Constable Clive Hayes and PCSO Saheena Tegally, for bravery and dedication to duty resulting in the arrest of two males for a knifepoint robbery
• Police Sergeant Susan Everett, for professionalism, dedication to duty and enthusiasm while serving as Diversity Officer for Barnet
• PCSO Osman Bolukbasi, for professionalism, initiative and compassion when dealing with the victim of a knifepoint robbery
• PCSO Alex Alaka, for professionalism and bravery detaining three suspects involved in a knifepoint robbery
• PCSO Neil Lawson, for professionalism and initiative when pursuing and detaining a male involved in fraud
• Major Crime Unit, for outstanding contribution to the investigation of serious assaults
• Police Constable Holly Brand and Police Constable Marc Hamill for tenacity and resilience in the initial pursuit of two prolific and dangerous offenders
• Police Constable Ross McGorm for bravery and determination in the detention of two prolific and dangerous offenders
• Police Constable Mohammed Deen, for teamwork and determination in the detention of two prolific and dangerous offenders
• Police Constable Peter Ganson and Police Constable Ray O'Brien, for bravery and determination in the detention of two prolific and dangerous offenders
• Police Constable Steven Phillips, Police Constable Gavin Pain, Police Constable John Hine, Police Constable Ben Lamb for teamwork and determination in the detention of two prolific and dangerous offenders
• Police Constable Robert Ward, for professionalism and bravery, leading to the arrest and charge of four men for robbery
• Detective Sergeant Andrew Goodwin, for leadership, professionalism and dedication to duty on Barnet's Public Protection Unit
• Detective Constable Simon Hunt, for professionalism, dedication and a partnership approah to Barnet's Public Protection Unit
• Jessica Nice, for professionalism, dedication and a partnership approach to Barnet's Public Protection Unit
• Natalie Daniels, for professionalism and significant contribution to partnership work on Barnet Borough, in particular Public Protection issues
• Police Constable Nicholas Vaughan, Police Constable Claire Sheldrake, Police Constable Graham Ayrton and Police Constable Janine Hoole, for bravery and professionalism in the detention of two violent males with weapons
• Police Constable Tahir Osman Akhtar, for professionalism and resilience while effecting an off-duty arrest of a violent man for robbery
• Michael Opeto and Robert Somerville, for bravery, tenacity and community spirit assisting in the detention of a man armed with a knife
• Police Sergeant Philip Taylor and Police Sergeant Meredydd Jones, for leadership ability and professionalism during an incident where officers were repeatedly stung by wasps while trying to rescue an 11-week old baby and safely detain his mother
• Police Constable Noel Aher, for professionalism and bravery during an incident where officers were repeatedly stung by wasps while trying to resue an 11-week old baby and safely detain his mother
• PCSO Stewart MacLaren, for initiative and resilience leading to the arrest of two men responsible for a number of cash-point thefts
• Police Constable Nicholas Perry, for professionalism, initiative and detective ability when dealin with a prolific robber
• PCSO Nicholas Locker, for bravery and tenacity in detaining two violent robbery suspects while off-duty
• PC John Parisi, for professionalism and resilience while effecting an off-duty arrest of two females for robbery