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Schererville Police honor detectives, officers, civilian staff, retiring K‑9s and volunteers
Summary
The Schererville Police Department presented annual recognitions at the Board of Safety meeting on March 6, including detective and officer of the year, a life‑saving award, civilian recognition, K‑9 retirements and volunteer certificates.
The Schererville Police Department used the Board of Safety meeting on March 6 to present its annual awards, recognize retiring K‑9 teams and honor the department's volunteer corps.
Detective of the Year: Commander Kevin Wagner announced that Detective Mendez was chosen as the 2024 detective of the year. Wagner said the detective bureau handled 832 incidents in 2024 and filed 695 charges — both the highest numbers recorded by the bureau — and credited detectives and cross‑trained officers for the workload. Wagner described one prolonged burglary investigation in which Detective Mendez used license‑plate reader data, multiple search warrants and extensive cell‑data analysis; the investigation, started after a June burglary, culminated in filed charges in November 2024. Wagner said the burglary caused approximately $40,000 in property damage and the suspects stole roughly $300,000 in merchandise, and that Mendez worked the case on and off for about five months.
Officer of the Year: Commander Bork announced Officer Ryan Edgar as the patrol division's officer of the year for 2024. Bork cited Edgar's statistical increases across performance categories, a 47% increase in custodial arrests, a 44% increase in felony charges and a 40% increase in misdemeanor charges from 2023 to 2024, and noted Edgar contributed 426 hours to field‑training program instruction in 2024.
Life‑Saving Award: Corporal Joe Sakuroga recounted an incident on Nov. 11, 2024, in which Officer Keith Hickock located a gunshot victim, established rapport and performed trauma care including application of chest seals before the Schererville Fire Department assumed care and the victim was airlifted to the University of Chicago trauma center. Sakuroga noted Hickock completed training as a tactical medic in September 2024 and credited his medical and prior military experience with the life‑saving response. The victim, Alex Miller, was present in the audience.
Civilian of the Year: Records and SouthCOM manager Kelly Winckup presented the civilian award to dispatcher Jacob Queller, praising his reliability during severe storms on July 15, 2024, when dispatch operations were strained and Queller remained on duty to assist his colleagues.
K‑9 retirements: Officer Jake Birmingham spoke about the retirements of K‑9 Hawk and K‑9 Juno and recognized handlers for their long service to the department. Birmingham emphasized the handler‑canine bond and the unit's training contributions.
Volunteers in Policing (VIPs): Corporal Ryan Staley acknowledged the department's VIP volunteers. Staley said VIPs responded to more than 200 incidents in 2024, completed about 780 vacation checks, performed VIN inspections and assisted with local events and enforcement tasks; volunteers issued roughly 130 handicap‑parking tickets. The department presented certificates of appreciation to several volunteers in attendance.
No board votes were required for the awards, retirements or recognitions; these items were presented as department reports and ceremonial business.
