Acting district commissioner for the southern metropole Brigadier Phindiwe Ntungele presents a long-service award to Warrant Officer Craig Collins while acting Fish Hoek police chief Captain Vumile Binza looks on.
Warrant Officer Craig Collins will bid Fish Hoek police station a final farewell on Thursday March 28 as he retires after 40 years of service.
He was joined by family, friends and colleagues on Friday March 15 at the Fish Hoek Athletics Club to celebrate his retirement.
For the first time in 40 years, the tables were turned as he arrived at the venue in cuffs snapped on him for a lark by colleagues.
He started his career on March 7, 1984 at Simon’s Town police station where he worked for 25 years and moved up the ranks.
At the time, he lived in Scarborough, and he describes his time there as “tranquil.” He later moved to Sun Valley and was promoted to warrant officer in 1995. Following a restructuring in 2010, he was transferred to Fish Hoek police station where he remained until his retirement.
He recalls an incident as a rookie where he and another officer had caught two men breaking into a car “red handed” in the still relatively undeveloped Glencairn Heights. The men ran off in different directions and he chased one across steep and rocky terrain and his legs started feeling “wobbly” after a while.
He said he could see the suspect was struggling as well, but despite telling him to stop, he would not and he was forced to fire a warning shot which made the man halt.
Fish Hoek's acting police chief, Captain Vumile Binza, thanked Warrant Officer for his “extraordinary service” and said an officer of his calibre was hard to find.
Warrant Officer Collins said he was looking forward to spending time with his family and renovating his house.