Mr Worboys, who is now based in Dubbo, confirmed at the time that ‘new enforcement squads will be deployed to police regional areas’ and they will ‘work out of hubs’.

“The enforcement squads are really around prevention and disruption which then will hopefully decrease the workload for the uniformed police and the other police,” he said at the time.

“I think that is the important thing that if you keep putting resources into crime then you never win the battle and the regional enforcement squads are key, they're central to preventing and disrupting crime.”

A number of concerned residents have contacted the Mudgee Guardian claiming key roles at the Mudgee Police Station, including the commander and administrations officer, will be relocated to Dubbo as part of the restructure.

NSW Police Minister, Troy Grant, explained, “it is entirely false to suggest that police services will be diminished in any way as a result of the re-engineering.”

“This process is in its infancy, and communities across the State, including in the Dubbo electorate, and local police, will be consulted on any potential changes.”

The establishment of the Police Re-engineering Taskforce comes as the latest crime statistics show a reduction in the majority of recorded criminal incidents in the Mid-Western region.

In the 12 months to June, the region had 114 domestic violence incidents, 31 motor vehicle thefts, 91 incidents of stealing from dwellings and 241 incidents of malicious damage to property. Indecent assault increased from 29 in 2016 to 40 in 2017.