With his eyes set on expansion, KingAlarm Managing Director John Azar has appointed Jamaican-born international security expert Michael King as special projects, training and policy consultant, a move that Azar says “will further distinguish” his company “from others in the industry”.

“We have some very exciting new offerings that we will be bringing to market in 2021 to further revolutionise the security industry here. Mike and his wealth of knowledge will be integral to these offerings,” Azar told the Jamaica Observer opting to await the new year before elaborating on his plans.

King, who was recently named commander of New York Police Department’s Special Victims Unit, has more than 20 years’ experience in law enforcement with that police force.

A KingAlarm announcement of his appointment published in last week’s Business Observer stated that King, who holds the rank of inspector, has extensive experience in counter-terrorism, crime scene, sex crimes, and homicide investigations, as well as forensic data analysis.

Additionally, the announcement said, King has received comprehensive cyber investigative training from both the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York City office of the District Attorney Cyber Division.

King has also received training in medico-legal death investigation from the New York City Office of the Medical Examiner.

“He’s someone we had consulted in the past,” Azar told the Business Observer. “He’s assisted us with some sensitive investigations with clients and with some debriefing of the incidents and independent review of certain critical incidents that our response teams have been involved in.

“There’s no doubt the wealth of experience that he has in the security industry and we thought it would be an excellent opportunity to formalise that arrangement to have him literally consult on a variety of things.”

Since it began operations in March 2000 KingAlarm has grown into a formidable company employing 3,500 people and providing 24-hour monitoring and response services to more than 12,000 locations across the island.

The company, which has its headquarters on Caledonia Avenue, just outside Cross Roads in the capital city, also provides vehicle tracking and fleet management services to 15,000 vehicles islandwide.

King, who was born and raised in Montego Bay, said he had, on many of his past trips to Jamaica, observed KingAlarm personnel in action during their daily activities.

“I have always been impressed with their training, professionalism, uniformed demeanour and willingness to go above and beyond to assist not only KingAlarm clients, but the public in general,” he told the Business Observer.

“I have often heard private citizens who are not KingAlarm clients express to me how much safer they feel when they see KingAlarm personnel patrolling the areas where they live. I have always been impressed by the security product that Mr John Azar has built and continues to expand in KingAlarm and wanted to be a part of building this product even further,” added the Cornwall College old boy who also explained that his consultation agreement with KingAlarm does not incur a conflict of interest with his current duties.

“I am taking this consultant position with KingAlarm in a private capacity and there is absolutely no connection with my current employer,” King told the Business Observer.

He said his experience in the largest police department in the world “brings a lot of current security expertise to a small, but expanding security agency such as KingAlarm”, a point with which Azar agreed, saying that King’s expertise goes far beyond security.

“The security industry is always evolving and there are certain things we will be delving into that his wealth of experience will no doubt put us in an advantageous position,” Azar said, pointing to cybercrime as one area in which King’s skills match very well with the direction in which the company is going.

“The reality is, aside from his integrity and just the nature of who Michael is, by formalising that relationship and having him on call for the company to reach out to, if and when the need arises, is certainly something that I feel will further enhance the services that we offer,” said Azar.