FALMOUTH, Trelawny – Accolades and gifts poured in to celebrate the end of tenure for Superintendent Kirk Ricketts of the Trelawny Police Division, in a surprise shindig at the Royalton White Sands ballroom in the parish, recently.

Ricketts, the former commanding officer for the division, which comprises three zones and nine police stations, took up duties as commanding officer for the tough St Andrew South Division on Monday.

He began his tenure in Trelawny on April 1, 2019 which was highlighted by the master of ceremonies Deputy Superintendent of Police Christopher Bowen, who said that it was ‘All Fools’ Day,’ but emphasised that Ricketts was “no fool”.

The tributes, which were given by his team and external stakeholders such as the custos, the mayor, Member of Parliament, the Trelawny Chamber of Commerce and others, attested to Ricketts’s willingness to work with the community and his positive contributions to the parish.

Custos of Trelawny, Paul Muschett, described him as “a man who raised the bar”.

“The measure of a man is shown in the send-off that he is given. Of all the superintendents I have had the pleasure of working with, and I have seen quite a few, Superintendent Ricketts raised the bar, as far as I am concerned, and I wish him all the best in the future,” expressed Muschett.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Clifford Chambers, Ricketts’s former boss, echoed similar sentiments, adding that his loss to the parish will be impactful.

“The last couple of weeks, I have seen where I have lost in excess of five of my senior officers and I can tell you that losing Superintendent Ricketts is the most impactful of the lot…when it comes on to a person who understands the issues, understands the challenges, understands the people, and know how to get things done — there is no one in the Area One who I can say can do it better than he has. He has done an exceptional job. He is going into a tough division, but I know that he has the competence, the capability and the aptitude and the human skills to get the job done,” ACP Chambers, the head of the Police Area One, argued.

Kenneth Grant, president of the Trelawny Lay Magistrates Association, described Ricketts as “an officer and a gentleman”.

“He was the best superintendent to have served the parish of Trelawny,” Grant stressed.

Sergeant Wayne Wallace from the Trelawny Community Safety and Security Department conveyed that Ricketts had “mastered the art of listening” and that “there is no way we could allow you to leave without cementing our mark of respect to you so that wherever you go there is a team in Trelawny that honour you and respect you”.

Superintendent Kirk Ricketts in his remarks expressed appreciation for the staging of the function, stressing that it was “really a surprise”.

“I am really touched by the reaction…my tenure here would have resulted in this kind of outpouring of support…I learnt so much from you guys here. Coming here, it was my first command at a geographic division and it was a diverse team — we had some challenges, especially as a young superintendent. What it taught me is how do you interact with your colleagues; how do you not step on toes unnecessarily and how to have a synergy that would move the division from where it was to where I believe I am now leaving it. It is a learning process for me and that is what I am going to take to my new division,” Ricketts commented.