Recruit Awarded NZ Bravery Medal Graduates

New Zealand Police National News Release

A man who was awarded a New Zealand Bravery Medal in October for attempting to save the life of a young woman in Auckland last year is among 46 constables who will graduate from The Royal New Zealand Police College tomorrow.

Constable Kali Fungavaka was awarded the NZ Bravery Medal for his attempts to save the woman who was set alight at an Otahuhu service station by a man known to her. After seeing the sensitive way that detectives working on the case handled the situation, he decided he wanted to join the Police.

Constable Fungavaka will work in Otahuhu where the incident happened. "I have a lot of admiration for the officers working there. I hope to be a police officer that people feel they can approach and trust. I want to have a positive impact on people's lives like certain officers have had on mine, both recently and when I was younger."

Also among this week's graduates are two new constables who say they would not have joined police services in their birth countries, but New Zealand Police's good reputation made them consider the career.

Constable Ildiko Elliott, who will work in Henderson, came to New Zealand from Hungary three years ago. "The New Zealand Police is an organisation you can trust and I'm really proud to be part of it."

Her colleague, Constable Ryan Manley, who will work in Wellington, fled a tobacco farm in Zimbabwe with his family four years ago. "I feel very fortunate to live in New Zealand today and I'm pleased I can contribute to keeping New Zealand safe in this way."

Four prizes, including the prize for First in Wing, were awarded to a former self-employed arborist from Tauranga, Constable Murray McGowan.

Tomorrow's graduates follow in the footsteps of 45 colleagues who graduated two weeks ago. A considerable number have been posted to the Auckland region (16 from this intake and 18 from the last graduation), but New Zealand Police still wants to hear from more people who want to join the Police in Auckland.

The graduation will take place at The Royal New Zealand Police College on Thursday 16 November at 2:00pm.

* 46 recruits will graduate, 40 males and 6 females

* The average age of wing members is 29 (the youngest is 19 and the oldest is 43)

To find out more about joining the Police phone 0800 NEW COPS (639 2677) or visit www.betterworkstories.co.nz.

Postings:

Northland - Dargaville (1), Kaitaia (1), Whangarei (1)

North Shore/Waitakere/Rodney - Henderson (3)

Auckland City - Avondale (3), Mt Wellington (1)

Counties Manukau - Manurewa (2), Papakura (1), Howick (2), Otahuhu (3), Pukekohe (1)

Waikato - Hamilton (5)

Bay of Plenty - Rotorua (1), Tauranga (1)

Central - Levin (1), New Plymouth (1), Palmerston North (1), Taumarunui (1), Wanganui (1)

Eastern - Gisborne (1)

Wellington - Wellington (4), Lower Hutt (1), Masterton (2), Porirua (2)

Tasman - Blenheim (1), Nelson (2)

Canterbury - Timaru (1)

Southern - Dunedin (1)

Wing 235 prize winners:

* Minister's Prize for First in Wing was awarded to Constable Murray McGOWAN posted to Tauranga.

Constable McGOWAN was also awarded the Ericsson Practical Prize (overall winner for practical assessments, file preparation and fingerprinting), the Holden Tactical Skills and Safety Prize (overall winner in defensive tactics, firearms and driving), and the Driver Training Award.

* Commissioner's Prize for Second in Wing was awarded to Constable Jamie McDONALD posted to Porirua.

* Patron's Prize for Third in Wing was awarded to Constable Ben ROLTON posted to Nelson.

* The International Police Association Academic Prize was awarded to Constable Anna WILLIAMS posted to Wellington.

* The Physical Training and Defensive Tactics Award was awarded to Constable Dennis WEIR posted to Gisborne.

Constable WEIR was also awarded a Police Association Section Prize (see below).

* The Meltzer Prize for Weapon Training was awarded to Constable Dana JOHANSON posted to Masterton.

Police Association prizes for section achievement:

This prize is awarded to an individual from each section who, in the collective view of the members of the section and the wing instructors, made the greatest contribution to the overall success of the team.

Section One, Constable Craig AITU posted to Rotorua

Section Two, Constable Reece MUNRO posted to Dunedin

Section Three, Constable Dennis WEIR posted to Gisborne

Wing Patron: Don Tricker

Don Tricker is an iconic softball coach, leading the New Zealand Black Sox to two world titles, one in South Africa (2000) and the other in Christchurch (2004). He now plays a critical role in raising the standards of sports coaching within New Zealand as Sport and Recreation's Coaching Team Leader. He has won numerous awards including the Halberg Coach of the Year (2001), Wellington Coach of the Year (2004) and notably Wellington Sportsperson of the Year (2004), which was the first time that anyone other than an athlete had been awarded the overall award.

Don Tricker will attend the graduation.

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