Crime & Safety

Greenwich PD Hires New Recruit

Alberto Escoffery of Stamford was sworn in as Greenwich's newest police officer on Wednesday.

 

A firearms instructor from Stamford has become the Greenwich Police Department's newest recruit.

Alberto E. Escoffery, a firearms instructor providing instruction to individuals in the care and proper use of firearms, is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts in Amhert, with a bachelor of arts degree with a major in legal studies and minors in psychology, sociology, criminology and hotel and restaurant management. He also is a graduate of the Rye Country Day School.

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Before he was sworn in by First Selectman Peter Tesei, who's also the town's police commissioner, Police Chief James Heavey said of Escoffery's educational background, "I think you will be using all of those talents."

Before administering the oath of office, Tesei said, "Nothing is more important than life safety issues. As you join the ranks of the Greenwich Police Department, you join a long line of exemplary men and women. You join the ranks of Greenwich's finest."

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Escoffery begins six months of training at the Connecticut Police Academy in Meriden on Jan. 4. "I hope you're ready to start doing all those sit-ups and push-ups and running," Heavey said. After graduating from the academy, Escoffery will receive 12 weeks of field training with a senior Greenwich police officer.

Heavey said that with Escoffery's appointment, the department still has 12 vacancies. The department has an authorized strength of 155 officers. More than 200 people have applied to take the patrolman's examination on Jan. 6, Heavey said. The department can hire officers when there are vacancies in the Connecticut Police Academy. Because of that limitability, Heavey said he is working with other Fairfield County police departments to establish a regional police academy so that local departments are able to hire and train new officers more quickly.

Escoffery was joined by his sister, Nicole Escoffery, also a Stamford resident. They along with friends, Tesei and Heavey, joked that Escoffery's badge number—123—was given to him on the second day of the first month of 2013. "Maybe you should play all combinations of that number" in the lottery, Tesei said.


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