Police Insight

BRONZE COMMANDER QUALIFICATION

Question: What do big football matches, political demonstrations and music festivals all have in common?

Answer: They all attract big crowds and, certainly in the case of football matches and political demonstrations, not everyone in the crowd always agrees with everyone else!

In order to ensure public safety at all major events, the RGP uses three levels of command, Gold (strategic level), Silver (tactical level) and Bronze (the operational level). The RGP’s Inspector Sean Picton has just returned from Kent where he was successful in passing the College of Policing’s Public Order, Public Safety Bronze Commanders’ Course.

Elements of the course included Operational Planning, Legal Requirements, Resources, Use of Cordons, Barriers and Vehicles, and Contingency Planning. The task for Inspector Picton was slightly more difficult than that of other students because Gibraltar’s legislation is slightly different from that in UK. In some of the other discussions, such as the “Best Use of Police Horses” it was rather difficult for him to make a meaningful contribution!

“Throughout the course, it was stressed that, as we live in a democracy, we must allow for some people to disagree with others and for people from both sides of an issue to be able to express their views,” said Sean.

He added, “However, always at the forefront of our planning was the essential need for the public to be kept safe. Often, this level of public safety can be ensured by good forward planning.

“In my 13 years as a police officer, this was one of the best courses I’ve attended. It had a real relevance to my job and it gave me a different perspective on my duties at a major event.”

It was smiles all round after a Gibraltar charity received a cheque for £2,000 from the Royal Gibraltar Police.

The money was raised by the RGP’s 2023 Recruit Class during a community event.

The money was donated to Cancer Relief Gibraltar, which has been providing support to people living with cancer on the Rock for over 40 years.

On hand to receive the novelty-size-cheque at the charity’s headquarters were Laina Sultana and Bianca Yeo.

Bianca, who works in the charity’s Events and Fundraising Department, said, “We couldn’t run this place if it wasn’t for community fundraising events such as this, which are really important to us.

“All the money received goes to providing free services to anyone affected by cancer in the community, not just patients but also carers.

“We’d like to thank everyone who came to the event and donated money, and of course to all the officers who helped organise the event, we know how much work goes into organising these sorts of events.”

For more information visit www.cancerrelief.gi

PASSING OUT CEREMONY

Royal Gibraltar Police and Gibraltar Defence Police officers marked the end of their Training School with a Passing Out Parade at Central Hall.

On parade were twelve RGP and three GDP officers who were inspected by His Excellency the Governor, watched on by Minister John Cortes, local dignitaries, friends and family.

The new officers come from a wide variety of backgrounds and include a Royal Marine Commando, a Chief Inspector from Police Scotland, a Parking Management Official and a student. There are also a number of UK police officers who have moved to Gibraltar from the UK.

During the ceremony, PC Andrew Newton received the “Best Academic” award, whilst PC Tristan Lark received the “Best All Round Recruit” award.

In his address, Police Commissioner Richard Ullger, said, “Policing Gibraltar over the coming years will be challenging for our newest of recruits, but they can be confident that the skills they have been taught over the past few months will equip them to deal with the different incidents they will be deployed to.

No two incidents will ever be the same, and we shall make mistakes in our journey, but we shall learn from them, share our experiences and become better at what we do.”

Samantha Sacramento, the Minister for Justice, added, “Today marks a momentous occasion for the Royal Gibraltar Police as we congratulate their new recruits on their Passing Out Parade.

“Their dedication and commitment to serving and protecting our community is truly admirable, and I have no doubt that they will uphold the highest standards of professionalism and integrity in their duties. As the Minister of Justice, I extend my warmest congratulations and best wishes for a successful career ahead.”

The new officers will now join their more senior colleagues where they will spend the next two years on probation.

The SOS Perrera de Los Barrios shelter for abandoned dogs over the border in Spain has often been subjected to torrential rain and flooding that occurs not just once a year, but often twice. This has caused devastation to the kennels leading to huge salvage operations from locals in the Campo de Gibraltar area as well as people from Gibraltar who have come together to find temporary shelters within foster carers and private kennels for the animals. However, this creates incredible stress and danger to the dogs and volunteers as they evacuate the dogs. 

Carol Newman, part of the fundraising team for the charity, explains how the cost of running the original site is about €200,000 a year and money is still needed to keep that going at the moment. Thankfully, due to the generosity of two very generous donors, one a businessman from Gibraltar, funds have been provided to purchase a more suitable piece of land on higher ground where the dogs will be able to stay in a safe and secure environment until they can be found permanent homes. 

Carol says that all the plans have been approved and it is a beautiful large piece of land that is quite high up so it won’t be liable to flooding in the future. “There will be loads of room for play areas for the dogs, with an on-site veterinary clinic which will be available for people from the local community to take their dogs to if they can’t afford to pay full price vet fees.” Added to this there will be a visitor’s centre and an education centre.  “We want it to be based on the idea of a UK shelter, and not have it called a pound anymore,” Carol states. If anyone knows the UK TV programme ‘The Dog House’ that follows the rescue charity Dogs Trust matching homeless dogs with hopeful dog owners, Carol says that they hope to emulate that with fenced off areas so that there are no distractions when dogs meet their potential adopters.  

“The fundraising that is ongoing to keep the current pound running is nowhere near enough to cover the massive costs of building and equipping a new shelter,” she says. “The land has been fully fenced now and water has been installed and we are ready to start planting trees to line the fenced perimeter, but we still need a huge injection of funding to continue with the build.”

Los Barrios is essentially a council pound that holds approximately three hundred dogs. “All dogs, regardless of age or condition, whether they are pregnant or have puppies, are accepted into the pound,” Carol says. “Once at the pound, they are cared for, fed and receive veterinary care, including spaying and neutering.”

Eight hundred dogs a year pass through the pound, with a third being adopted, mostly in Spain, some in Gibraltar, and the rest going to countries in Europe.

Adopting or fostering a dog can be life changing, not just for the dog who benefits from a safe and loving home, but also for the adopter and their family. For all the love we give them, dogs seem to always give us triple the love in return.

The pound is run and funded entirely by volunteers and donations. “We have a lot of Spanish volunteers as well as a high percentage of foreigners, including British, Scandinavians, Germans, and Finnish,” Carol states. “A lot of the dogs go to Finland and Germany as well as to the UK.” There are also people who volunteer their services, such as a lawyer, who are not involved directly. 

Fundraising is a constant task and instead of just thinking about doing small fundraisers which is what has happened in the past, Carol says that they now need to make it bigger. “There is no way that we can make the money that is needed just in the local area,” she states.

In an attempt to raise more funds, Carol is currently applying to international animal funds. “I have got three applications in at the moment, to funds mostly based in the UK, but they supply funds all around the world and in Europe and we are waiting to hear back from them.”

Another great way to support the charity is by popping into the SOS Los Barrios Charity Shop Duquesa, situated in the Gallery area in La Duquesa Port. The shop is full of good quality second hand items and clothing and generates a regular income for the charity. “All the money raised in the shop goes into the fund for the new shelter and anything that is raised outside of the general week-to week, month-to-month running of the pound is also put into the shelter fund.”

Carol would like to thank everyone for their support. “Now we have the hard task of raising enough money to make the shelter the best place we can for all the discarded dogs in the Campo Gibraltar. This task is huge and we ask everyone to raise as much as they can, in any way they can!”

Just as we were about to publish this article, the fundraising team had some fantastic news. “One of the foundations we applied to, The Sunley Foundation, have pledged £100,000 once the build is under way. Also one of the vets that helps on castration days has pledged to buy the equipment for the new veterinary centre.” Carol says, adding that they are ‘over the moon’ to learn about this wonderful support. 

You can help the SOS Perrera de Los Barrios team make their dream a reality and ensure that the dogs will not have the fear of flooding each and every winter by donating to the fund. 

Donations can be made by:

Bank transfer ES19 2100 8508 5402 0018 7104

Via the Go Fund Me account: ‘Help Los Barrios build their new shelter’ (the money goes directly into the SOS fund), or via PayPal through the website: www.perreradelosbarrios.com

More information can be found on their Facebook page: www.facebook.com/soslosbarrios

HMGoG Minister for Equality, Samantha Sacramento, visited a “Women in Policing” information stand at the Piazza. The Minister had a chance to learn about the “I Can Do That” campaign which was launched today by the RGP’s Women in Policing Committee.

Find out more at police.gi/women-in-policin

From studying an English Literature degree in York to becoming a Sergeant in the Royal Gibraltar Police, Stewart Finegan explains how he found himself policing on the Rock.

It was at a family wedding in London back in March 2006 where Stewart first met his Gibraltarian wife.

The pair hit it off and less than a year later he had quit his job as a precision engineer in Tameside, Greater Manchester, to follow her back to the Rock at the age of 27.

“I didn’t even own a passport at the time; I had to get one to start visiting. Despite the fact that I am not built for hot weather, I loved Gibraltar. Pretty much from the first time I came here, I thought this is where I’m going to settle down,” said the 43-year-old dad of three.

Born in Mossley, on the western edge of Saddleworth Moor, Stewart started a degree in English Literature at the University of York, but left the course early after deciding it wasn’t for him. From there he started work labouring on various building sites, before settling in a precision engineering job at a company in his home town.

So how did Stewart end up working for the Royal Gibraltar Police?

He explained: “I thought, I’m settling down now and I’d better do something that I can be proud of. In my previous job I wasn’t getting an enormous amount of satisfaction and I was just plodding along and existing.”

In 2007, you could only join the RGP if you were local, or a British citizen who had lived on the Rock for at least three years. So, Stewart waited three years before applying.

In October 2010 Stewart started his Training School and Passed Out in March 2011, before joining Green Shift (now Response Team 2) as a Recruit Police Officer.

He said: “I enjoyed the training school but hated shift at first. I found it quite overwhelming for the first few months, but I had a good shift and I started to find my feet and get a bit more settled and comfortable with the role.

“I wasn’t quite a church mouse when I started, but I wasn’t as vocal as I am now. When you start, you don’t know anything, even if you think you do. So I kept my eyes and ears open and my mouth shut unless I had something to say. There’s nothing worse than somebody joining the shift who thinks they know it all.”

During his near 13-year-career, Stewart worked in the Response Teams, Community Policing and the Criminal Investigation Department, after which he was promoted to Sergeant in 2016.

As a Sergeant, he returned to Response Team, then later Drug Squad and CID, before taking up his current role in as Sergeant for Recruitment, Training and Performance.

Asked whether he had any career highlights, he said: “One of the best appraisals I received was from a Sergeant in Neighbourhood Policing; ‘Despite the officer’s strong northern accent, he is nevertheless an effective communicator.’ It’s the best backhanded compliment I’ve ever received. Glorious.

“I don’t think my accent’s that bad; it’s not impenetrable. It’s just very distinct. I think most people automatically know who it is when I ring them up, without me having to say.”

He went on to talk about enjoying his time as a detective in CID “immensely.”

“It was an extraordinarily busy period and we dealt with some very unpleasant matters, especially the murder-suicide at Boschetti’s Steps, but we had a great team and everyone was motivated.

One of his highlights in CID was participating in an interview in which a suspect admitted to 14 separate burglaries. The suspect’s lawyer was also sitting in the interview.

“We got dragged up to see the Superintendent afterwards, who said he couldn’t be happier with us because we were getting results.”

And when asked what was the best thing about being a police officer, he said: “For me, having a sense of purpose. Doing the roles that I’ve done has made me proud. I’m proud to wear the uniform.”

And the worst thing about being a police officer?

He explained: “The stress that it puts on family life. When I started in CID my son was five. Whilst I’ve tried to avoid missing out on birthdays like so many officers have in the past, there’s been plenty of occasions where I’ve missed out on being there for my lad and my missus at home. She’s had to pick up a lot of slack over the years and I’m eternally grateful to her.

“In my first month in CID, I didn’t leave the office earlier than about 7 – 8pm. There was one day when I when I didn’t exactly leave on time, but I went to leave at 5pm. I was asked where I was going. I had to explain that I hadn’t seen my lad for three weeks — by the time I would come home he was always in bed.

“I think there was a much greater expectation in years gone by to put the job before family and just deal with all the accompanying problems that that causes; divorces, this that and the other. But thankfully we’ve moved away from that now in the RGP.”

When he’s not busy with the Recruit school, Stewart spends his spare time “reading, watching the same films over and over again and listening to music that nobody else likes.”

He continued: “I’m a fan of horror films. I tend to watch the same half dozen John Carpenter films over and over.

“I like a good spooky yarn. Something atmospheric. I’m a little squeamish when it comes to modern horror films. I don’t like blood and gore for the sake of it. I’ve had plenty of that in the job, thank you very much.”

Stewart was asked if he would recommend a career in the police to those thinking of joining the RGP in the next recruitment drive.

“I would, but think long and hard about it. It’s can be a taxing job, mentally and physically. Not everyone can do it and there’s no shame in the fact that not everyone can do it. It’s not a job for everybody. But saying that, anyone can do it if they put in the required effort, regardless of their background. If you have the right character, then it’s certainly a worthwhile career.”

RGP & Neurodiversity

In the RGP Training School, the current class of police recruits is being made aware of the various conditions that fall under the heading of what is known as “neurodiversity”

The underlying theory to this training is that, when carrying out their duties, officers may sometimes interact with people with conditions such as ASD (Autistic Spectrum Disorder), Dyslexia, ADHD, or Tourette’s.

It might be surprising, but a recent study found that, in the UK, as many as 1% of the population have ASD.

It was emphasised to recruits that some of these neurodivergent people may be highly talented – they just see the world around them in a different way.

Recruits also learned that neurodivergent people may display a wide array of behaviours resulting from their condition and that there is no easy guide on how to recognise these at first glance. In their training session, the recruits were asked to consider different ways of interacting with neurodivergent people and to consider when special measures might be appropriate when dealing with them as victims, witnesses, or offenders. In a wide-ranging discussion, the recruits were asked to consider alternative methods of communication and ways of providing any extra reassurance necessary if such a person needed to be brought to New Mole House.

In some police forces in UK, neurodivergent people are issued with ‘alert cards’ that give their basic information – and their condition – which they can show to any police officer with whom they have contact which is an idea that may be trialled here on the Rock. The recruits agreed that interacting with a neurodivergent person would usually require extra time and patience on their part. It was also agreed that there could never be a “One Size Fits All” approach.

The course instructor was PC Darrell Alman, who is a qualified teacher. Before returning to Gibraltar, Darrell regularly taught a class of autistic children in Reading, Berkshire, and he has also taught in the Alternative Learning Centre at Westside School. Away from his police duties, he regularly works closely with Gibraltar’s young neurodiverse community in subjects such as music, art and sensory learning.

Darrell said, “The aim of this training is to equip Police officers with the right awareness to enable them to interact with neurodivergent persons who they may come across in the course of their duties. I know that we will shortly introduce ‘Dementia Awareness’ into our Continuous Professional Development sessions so I hope we can add ‘Neurodiversity Awareness’ as well.”

“At any one time, we could be listening to a victim of domestic abuse or taking details over the radio of a suspected drunk driver and, at the same time, we know that there’s a lady downstairs who wants to report that she has lost her mobile phone,” says PC Kasmira Kingsley who is one of the RGP’s Command and Dispatch officers.

This week is International Control Room Week which celebrates and raises awareness of the vital role played by control room teams who deal with traumatic and distressing situations every day of the year.

Last year’s International Control Room Week saw over 200 control rooms and more than 10,000 personnel from police, ambulance, fire and coastguard services across the UK get involved, as well as control rooms from as far afield as the United States, Australia and India.

PC Kingsley, who has been in the RGP for six years, says, “It is impossible to describe a ‘typical’ shift in the Control Room. We deal with everything – from life-or-death emergencies to stupid, time-wasting phone calls. We also get a lot of foul-mouthed abuse. But, at all times, we need to stay calm, attentive, and polite when dealing with every caller.’

Another of the RGP’s Controllers is PC Jayron Walker who has been a police officer for just over three years. ‘Despite being quite junior, I think of Controllers as ‘the brains’ of the RGP. We receive lots of information over the police radios and from telephone calls and then we quickly assess that information before deciding which of our ‘limbs’ to use. Do we send a firearms unit? A van with extra officers? Could it be just a hoax?  

“We allocate a Grade to every incident: a Grade 1 is an emergency which must have an immediate response but it could last for some time. I was on duty when we had a man threatened to end his life and that took several hours and a lot of police manpower to resolve. At the other end of the scale we might allocate a routine event as Grade 4 which will be followed up when time permits.”  These decisions are quickly made by the Controller without any reference to a more senior officer.

The Control Room is manned by two Constables, 24 hours a day, seven days a week with the Controllers working on a three shift pattern, ‘Mornings’ (7am – 3pm), ‘Lates’ (2pm – 11pm) and ‘Nights’ (10pm – 8am). 

Mornings shifts are characterised by lots of administrative matters. Members of the public tend to make enquiries about lost property or they call to ask for details of ongoing investigations. Meanwhile officers being allocated to attend court, transport needs to be arranged for prisoners and Roads Policing officers are calling in with details of driving offences during the morning rush hour. 

In the afternoons, as children leave school and workers go home, the nature of the calls changes – there are more reports of anti-social behaviour, bad driving and domestic abuse. Later in the evening, the number of alcohol-related crimes starts to increase – reports come in of drunk drivers, fights and assaults, more domestic abuse, Road Traffic Collisions, border queues and so on. It is not unusual, especially during ‘Lates’ on a Friday, for there to be several major issues all running at once. “You get so busy that you can’t even speak to the other Controller – and anyway, he or she is just as busy as you are.”

The Night shift tends to have fewer incidents but often they can be the more serious ones – burglaries, break-ins, and very drunk drivers. 

But, throughout all the shifts there are always the irritating calls, “I’m calling the police emergency number 119 because I haven’t got any credit on my phone. What time does the ice cream van come to my estate?”

And, at least twice every shift, the Controllers will respond to an elderly person’s Panic Button going off. This usually means that officers must immediately be dispatched to the person’s home, often to find that an ambulance is required. 

Officers chosen for Controller training tend to have certain skills. They have the ability to stay calm in an emergency, they are good listeners and they must have endless supplies of patience. It also helps to be fluent in Spanish.

Kasmira says that being a Controller brings lots of job satisfaction.

“One night I took a poor-quality call in which a man was screaming in a mixture of French and Spanish so I deployed our Marine Section and, as a result, they were able to save the lives of several Moroccan men whose boat was sinking off Europa Point. There have been many other occasions when I have sent officers to intervene in cases of some nasty domestic abuse. When this happens, I get a real feeling of satisfaction from having played my part in helping someone who was in trouble.”

Jayron added, “I remember a night when I took a report about a missing child. The mother was understandably distraught but, by getting her to calm down and talk to me, I was able to work out where the child might be hiding. Officers went to investigate and found the child where I’d thought he might be. I got a good feeling from having done my bit to find him.”

Most people will never need to call the RGP Control Room, but if they do, we hope that, they understand that the officer on the other end of the line may also be dealing with several other important issues and with various people all wanting their problem to be dealt with, immediately. That public awareness is one of the main aims of International Control Room Week.

Who knows, it might be Kasmira or Jayron who you are speaking to …

Tony’s Retirement

The Royal Gibraltar Police has said goodbye to PC 118 Tony de Soto, who is retiring from the force, after nearly 14 years of service. 

Tony joined the RGP in 2009 at the age of 41 and worked for several years in the Response and Community Policing Team.

For the last eight years, he has mostly worked in the Armed Response Vehicle team and in his spare time he is a keen member of the Gibraltar Pistol Association.

He came third in the Open Senior event at an international shooting competition at O Pinhal in Portugal earlier this month.

Tony, 54, said, “I’m very proud and honoured to have served Gibraltar and if I could do it all again, I would.”

An RGP spokesperson, said, “PC De Soto, thanks for your years of service to Gibraltar and its people.

“We hope you enjoy your well-earned retirement and we wish you all the best.”

Happy retirement Tony, from all you friends at Insight and thought Gibraltar.

International Police Association Games 2022

A number of RGP officers are celebrating after competing in the International Police Association Games 2022 in Montenegro this week.

Held in the coastal town of Bar, 11 RGP officers battled it out in Shooting and a Futsal Tournament against 26 police forces from around the world.

The RGP came a respectable 9th in the Shooting out of 15 teams, with Sgt Sam Cottam finishing 27th, Sgt Craig Philbin coming 32nd and Inspector Albert Fernandez coming 36th in the individual shooting events out of 60.

Unfortunately, in the futsal competition the RGP’s team of eight did not progress past the group stages.

Sgt Craig Philbin, said: “Considering it was our first time using target air pistols we did remarkably well against some very accomplished shooters. The futsal team were unlucky not to progress past the group stages but gave some impressive performances.

“Abdel Rahmouni scored what is arguably the best goal of the tournament with a 20- metre rocket shot that left the goalkeeper helpless in the match against the Polish team. His post goal celebration has been the talk of the games and many friendships have been forged with our brother and sister officers from around the world.

“This is entirely in keeping with the motto of the IPA, which is ‘Service Through Friendship’.”

The IPA Games take place every two years and are open to serving police officers around the world.

Royal Gibraltar Police receives Silver Award

The Royal Gibraltar Police has received a Silver Award for supporting the Armed Forces community on the Rock.

The news comes just six months after the RGP signed up to the Armed Forces Covenant, a Ministry of Defence scheme where organisations pledge to treat service personnel and their families with fairness and respect.

A Silver Award is given to organisations who actively demonstrate support of the Armed Forces and encourage others to do the same.

The scheme, which saw the RGP receive a Bronze Award last November, also encourages the RGP and the MOD to liaise with charities and organisations to help the local military community in a number of areas.

In recent years, several police forces and organisations in UK have signed up to the Armed Forces Covenant.

The Commissioner of Police Richard Ullger, said: “We are very proud to have received this award. A number of our serving officers and staff come from a Forces background. The military has also been an integral part of Gibraltar’s history for the past 300 years. So we will support the Armed Forces in any way that we can.”

The Commissioner added that the RGP are also encouraging local businesses, community groups and individuals to work with the Force, by pledging their support to armed forces personnel and their families, as well as to reservists and veterans.

Colonel Mark Underhill OBE DL, Chief Executive at the North West of England and the Isle of Man Reserve Forces’ and Cadets’ Association, said: “On behalf of the Ministry of Defence, we are honoured and delighted to be able to recognise the outstanding support and commitment given to the Armed Forces Covenant by businesses and organisations through the Employer Recognition Scheme awards.

“Each recipient has demonstrated not only that their support to the Covenant and the wider Armed Forces community, but also that they are prepared to support their Reservists, Service Leavers, Spouses, Veterans, Cadet Force Adult Volunteers and Cadets in the workplace.”

RGP Family fun day raises
Thousands for Charity

Super heroes in our community

The RGP’s Community Policing Officers were recently invited to St Bernard’s First School to talk about “Super Heroes in Our Community”.

Youngsters were able to ask PC Steve Peach why he became an RGP officer, and how police help people in the community.

The pupils were then able to try their hand at putting on police uniforms.

Commendations

Two police officers received commendations from the Royal Gibraltar Police’s Commissioner for excellent work in relation to a domestic abuse case.

Police Constable Terence McCormack and Detective Constable Stephen Cracknell received the awards after their actions were described as “essential” in bringing about a successful prosecution.

PC McCormack’s dedication and commitment towards the victim in the case was noted, while DC Cracknell took a decisive Victim Impact Statement.

During the incident, the female victim felt that her life was in danger. The actions of the two officers helped to secure a three-year sentence for a local man. He was found guilty on multiple charges of assault and of false imprisonment.

(L to R) PC Terence McCormack, Commissioner of Police Richard Ullger, Assistant Commissioner of Police Cathal Yeats and DC Stephen Cracknell

Wear a hat day

Officers and civilian staff at the Royal Wear a Hat Day at New Mole House.

The event raises awareness and funds for the UK-based charity Brain Tumour Research.

It’s a busy department that most of the public don’t even know exists

Yet, the Force Intelligence Unit is at the heart of all of the RGP’s major investigations and policing strategies. From gathering intelligence on upcoming major events and keeping tabs on prolific offenders, to analysing crime hot spots and working with local and international law enforcement agencies, it’s fair to say Force Intel have their fingers in a lot of pies.

The unit is under the command of Detective Inspector Paul Barker, who has worked in the RGP for 20 years.

Paul, 45, who is originally from Sheffield, said, “Every large case that hits the headlines in one form or another will have had some involvement from Force Intelligence.

“We are responsible for collating, analysing and disseminating intelligence from a multitude of sources, including police officers, the public, HM Customs, the Gibraltar Defence Police, local and international law enforcement and security agencies, to name a few.

“With this information we provide intelligence to give our officers and other law enforcement agencies the tools they need to help identify offenders and bring people to justice.

“In a nutshell, we are a very busy office.”

All officers in the RGP for example, are encouraged to report intelligence and record it on the force’s intelligence system.

He added, “Once received, analysts check the information and then grade it, before uploading the sanitised intelligence, which officers can access 24 hours a day.”

Focused intelligence reports can then be distributed to policing teams, so that a fuller picture can be compiled about the criminal activity or offending behaviour of individuals or groups. This might result in more targeted foot patrols, search warrants and arrests.

Paul, who served in the Intelligence Corps of the British Army for a number of years before joining the RGP, said that certain departments in high risk policing areas within the RGP request information regularly; these include all the Crime Teams and Response Teams.

And, many people might not know that Force Intel is also home to Gibraltar’s Interpol Branch. So how does Interpol fit into the team?

Paul explained: “I also run the Interpol Gibraltar office. This is a sub-Bureau of the National Central Bureau in Manchester, which is the headquarters of Interpol in the UK.

“This means that we have direct access to Interpol databases and the 194 Interpol countries and their criminal data as well. It’s very useful in terms of being able to share information quickly and being able to assist in both foreign and local investigations.”

Paul continued, “We often work with Interpol. An example of this work might be if a registered sex offender comes to Gibraltar, we will receive a travel notification about this.

“We will then work with our Public Protection Unit to ensure that all the necessary safeguards are in place and that our officers know who is travelling. The sex offender may have conditions or restrictions as a result of crimes that they have committed in other jurisdictions.

“There will also be information requests from other countries asking us to share criminal data that we have on particular individuals.”

As for the close-knit team that works under Paul, there is a Detective Sergeant and two Detective Constables, who work as analysts.

He explained, “They analyse and interpret the information, so that actionable intelligence can be used for investigations or for officers on the ground that need that information quickly.

“The aim is to build the wider intelligence picture, which can be compared to finding the missing pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, in order to understand what is happening.”

And what sort of officers are best suited to work in Force Intel?

“We look for officers who are logical, analytical, have good reasoning skills and are able to decipher and unpick large amounts of information to identify what is relevant and what is not – and what potentially, might be the golden nugget.”

Another interesting branch of Force Intel is the role of the Football Liaison Officers (FLO), whose role has become more important since Gibraltar joined UEFA in 2013.

In the RGP, the FLO’s job is to help prevent public order problems at football matches involving all Gibraltar’s teams at home or abroad.

Paul said, “Part of the job is to ensure that football hooligans don’t cause us problems. We use intel to decide how big our police officer deployment should be for each match, and whether we are likely to have any issues or not.

“For higher risk games, such as the recent FC Copenhagen visit, we were in contact with FLOs from the Danish police in the months leading up to the game. These ‘Copenhagen spotters’ came out to Gibraltar and patrolled with us on the night, providing good intel, identifying known risk supporters and engaging with them in order to prevent problems.”

As for the best thing about working in Force Intel, he said, “There are always investigations ongoing where we provide intelligence support in order to prevent and detect crime, which provides a lot of job satisfaction.

“It’s very interesting and varied work where we are dealing with information and intelligence that helps our officers to bring offenders to justice.”