Brandon police honour dedicated officers, heroic citizens

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This article was published 17/05/2017 (3157 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Brandon Police Service honoured some of its best in blue on Tuesday, including Const. Marc DeDecker, who managed to subdue a suspect despite being stabbed several times in November, 2015.

DeDecker was stabbed by William Jonathan Mini with a paring knife seven times — twice in the torso through his protective vest, and five times in his upper leg on Nov. 30, 2015. DeDecker initially caught up to Mini outside of Brandon University following a report that a man had set fires inside his suite at the Uturn 3 building.

During the arrest, Mini fought and stabbed DeDecker who was still able to complete the arrest before going to hospital to be treated.

Mini has since received seven years for his part.

Yesterday, the afternoon event honoured DeDecker and several other BPS officers. It also recognized several citizens who have worked to assist the police.

“We are particularly proud of the Brandon Police Service,” Mayor Rick Chrest said greeting the crowd. “All of their members, all of the civilian employees, and all of the people in the community who either volunteer, or take part in all aspects of helping Brandon Police Service carry out their role of keeping us protected.”

Doug Hunt was one of many who were honoured with an award after he caught a suspect breaking into a vehicle on Grassland Crescent. Hunt chased and detained the suspect until police arrived and the man was taken into custody. It was also discovered that the man had broken into numerous other vehicles and was in possession of hundreds of dollars worth of stolen property.

Brock Ludwig, Joe Hamilton, and Randall Thiessen were honoured for the role they played in helping save a woman who was about to jump from the Eighth Street bridge.

Shay Boeve received an award for noticing a woman preparing to jump from the First Street bridge. According to the report, Boeve began talking with the woman, while Peter Boeve and Miranda Sadler directed traffic away from the scene to keep officers and civilians safe. Boeve, with the assistance of BPS officers, was able to get the woman back over the railing to safety. Const. Karen Raga and Const. Myran Hamm were also singled out for their role in the incident.

Krista Andronick was honoured after she helped police officers —  Const. Myriam Lumgair, Const. Denis Dufault and Const. Yaroslav Trokhym — who were called to scene of a car accident where a man was not breathing and in need of medical attention. Officers began CPR and shortly after were approached by Andronick, who is a nurse. Andronick performed CPR until emergency services attended. The man regained consciousness as a result of the aid.

“I didn’t realize (he was OK) until about 45 minutes after,” Andronick said. “The police officer actually called me and told me that he was alive. You don’t even know how to feel until after.”

Lumgair, Dufault and Trokhym were also honoured for performing CPR.

Correctional officers Colin Calcut and Derek Little were honoured after the pair was able to identify a suspect, who, earlier this spring, took part in several armed robberies, one of which resulted in life-threatening injuries to a victim. The correctional officers identified the man in a video clip obtained by police from a local business.

Const. Earl Preston was honoured for the role he played after finding two robbery suspects fighting in Brandon. Preston, who was off-duty at the time, was able to get control of the suspects who were detained outside a convenience store on 10th Street. He also directed bystanders until the suspects were taken into custody.

Sgt. Brian Partridge, Const. Chris James, Const. Rob Gale and Const. Bruce Verhelst were honoured for 20 years of service with a Canadian police agency; while Const. Neil Bradshaw, Const. Russ Paterson, and Const. Lucien Ethier were recognized for 12 years of service.

The award ceremony was part of Police Week which runs from May 15-21. Police Week is recognized nationally, with police and RCMP detachments from across Canada taking part in a number of activities with the public.

» The Brandon Sun