The re-engineering of the NSW Police Force in Western NSW took another step forward on Thursday when a second regional enforcement squad (RES) was announced.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Two weeks after a similar announcement was made in Dubbo, NSW Police Minister Troy Grant was joined in Tamworth by Deputy Commissioner Gary Worboys to announce a team of four specialised officers.
The Western Region RES is made up of two units with one sergeant and three constables each, and will be based at Dubbo and Tamworth, with the capacity to work throughout major hubs and smaller towns across the region.
But while Dubbo will get a designated domestic violence team, Tamworth will get two additional officers.
...this is just the beginning. There are more of these units to be rolled out.
- Troy Grant
Mr Grant said the announcement was another step towards the realignment of police resources in regional NSW.
“This RES unit will be the same as what we will have in Dubbo, with four officers at each site,” he said.
“But this is just the beginning. There are more of these units to be rolled out.
“What we want to reiterate the fact that there are no boundaries with these squads. They work locally but collectively as well.
“Day-to-day they will work to disrupt crimes at their own locations but their taskings may take all eight of them to Dubbo, or to Tamworth, or to Boggabri – really anywhere within the western region where they are needed they will be sent, and we plan to bring in more squads at targeted locations as time goes on.”
Mr Worboys is working to implement the re-engineering process, and has indicated his desire to have it in place by the end of the year.
The plan has brought with it some controversy, but Mr Grant remains adamant it will help regional areas of the state.
“We’ve never had anything like these rural crime squads, RES units and domestic violence squads before,” he said.
“It’s great to see regional NSW getting the level of policing it deserves, with teams targeted at addressing the issues that are prevalent in the bush.
“We think these groups will create a mobile force that can deal with regional problems.”
Deputy Commissioner Worboys said this is another resource available to tackle the scourge of the drug ice in regional communities.
“Officers work diligently across the State to put the communities they serve first, and this additional resource will help them prevent and disrupt those crimes that are having an impact on the everyday lives of residents and businesses,” he said.
“RES units can be deployed across NSW to tackle crimes like mid-level drug supply which will allow uniformed officers more time to focus on other crimes.