Inspector Bill Weatherly says Wyndham still poses many challenges. 77157 Picture: JOE MASTROIANNI
By XAVIER SMERDON
WYNDHAM’S top police officer has told Star he will miss serving the western suburbs.
Inspector Bill Weatherly has confirmed that he will be leaving Wyndham for Geelong, to take on a community engagement role, with his last official day being 3 March.
His replacement will be Inspector Cindy Millen, currently the Inspector at Moonee Valley.
Insp Weatherly said he had enjoyed his involvement with Wyndham and the rest of the West.
“It’s certainly been a great area to work in. My time in Wyndham has been fantastic,” Insp Weatherly said.
“It’s going to be strange leaving after working in the western suburbs for the last 40 years.”
Insp Weatherly grew up in Yarraville, and had previously worked in Footscray and Williamstown before spending the last five years in the top job in Wyndham.
Since he started at the Werribee Police Station, Wyndham’s population has grown by 70,000, which Insp Weatherly said added to the challenges of the job.
“There are huge challenges with this area especially with issues of population growth,” he said.
“We’ve got a lot of issues with young people and the infrastructure’s poor, which can lead to accidents.
“But one thing I’ve never stopped liking about Wyndham is how the people want to help.”
Insp Weatherly said while Wyndham still had a long way to go, he was proud of what he had achieved as Inspector.
“I’ve had a lot of hard times here, coming in new and with a lack of resources,” he said.
“In the last five years we’ve increased staffing numbers by around 40 per cent.
“I’m very confident that I’ve recruited so many good people to the area that it will leave Wyndham in good hands.”
As for challenges facing his replacement, Insp Weatherly said there were some areas that he still wanted to see improvement in.
“One area that I wasn’t really able to make a dint in was residential burglary and property damage,” he said.
“We’ve tried a lot of different strategies but we just can’t seem to get on top of it.
“Hopefully Inspector Millen will bring some fresh eyes to the area and be able to tackle that.”
