myPolice on Jun 13, 2022 @ 7:25am
Commissioner Katarina Carroll today congratulated six officers from the Queensland Police Service (QPS) who will receive the Australian Police Medal (APM).
Introduced in 1986, the APM is awarded for distinguished service by a member of an Australian police agency.
Commissioner Carroll said every little thing the award recipients had experienced throughout their lives made them perfect police officers.
“Police officers aren’t born, they’re made,” she said.
“The APM is the highest award bestowed on a police officer. The six QPS officers being awarded the APM have demonstrated outstanding dedication and commitment in their service to the Queensland community.
“I would like to congratulate them on this significant achievement and give them my personal thanks for their contribution.”
The recipients are:
Detective Inspector Leonie Steyger
Detective Inspector Steyger was sworn into the QPS in 1991 and is currently the operations leader of the Counter-Terrorism Investigation Group where she oversaw the arrest, return and prosecution of Australia’s first returned foreign fighter. She has excelled in the investigative field and dedicates a significant period of her service to investigating offences against children. She is responsible for leading serious child harm investigations, involving harrowing circumstances.
Detective Senior Sergeant Emma Novosel
Detective Senior Sergeant Novosel joined the QPS in 1995 and is currently the Officer in Charge (OIC) of the Mackay District Child Protection Investigation Unit (CPIU). As the OIC, Detective Senior Sergeant Novosel faces complex, critical, and confronting circumstances. Her exceptional leadership effectively guides junior investigators through the adoption of strategies, to ensure all available evidence for these complex and critical incidents will be later admissible in criminal court proceedings.
Senior Sergeant Gary Hunter
Senior Sergeant Hunter joined the Service in 1988 and is the current OIC of the Cairns City Police Beat where he has served for 11 years. He has been instrumental in changing the face of policing in Cairns Central Business District and demonstrates modern, positive, and refreshing applications of leadership. He is well known for being adaptive and agile to address complex changes. In 2017, Senior Sergeant Hunter was awarded a Queensland Police Meritorious Service Medal for his many achievements and commitment to the QPS, and for his service to the community.
Senior Sergeant Richard McIntosh
Senior Sergeant McIntosh commenced with the QPS in 1989 and is the current OIC of Goondiwindi Police Station where he has served for 15 years. He has been instrumental in developing community cohesion and youth engagement, particularly with First Nations initiatives. He has also been pivotal in improving cross border collaborative policing with New South Wales Police Force counterparts to implement an improved effective joint response targeting the movement and extradition of offenders across borders.
Sergeant Paul James
Sergeant James joined the QPS in 1991 and is the current OIC of Duaringa Police Station where he has served for 15 years. He is well known for being an exemplary example of a police officer in charge of a small country police station. He works tirelessly with his community, local government and other emergency service providers in relation to major critical incidents, crime prevention and disaster response.
Sergeant William Johnson
Sergeant Johnson was sworn into the QPS in 1982 and is currently serving as a Senior Coronial Support Officer and a Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) Officer. He provides an exceptional service to the community, coroners, pathologists and to Queensland Health counsellors and coronial burses. In 2004, he worked with the Australian Federal Police following the devastating impact of a tsunami in the Indian Ocean for DVI where he completed the repatriation process for deceased victims returning to Queensland. He also served as the DVI post-mortem co-ordinator during the 2010 – 2011 flood and cyclone events.
