Two Norfolk police officers who detained a pair of violent offenders wanted for threatening murder and blackmail are up for national honours recognising their bravery.
PC Katie Swann and PC Marley-Jay Symonds were called out to Ormesby, near Great Yarmouth, following reports of an armed man.
Two dangerous offenders were later arrested following a violent scuffle in a kitchen.
The pair’s actions have seen them nominated in the Police Bravery Awards which are due to take place this week.
The incident occurred in January 2019 when the officers were dispatched to the village of Ormesby following alarming reports that a man who was armed was threatening to kill and blackmail people.
The man was gone by the time the officers arrived but they found him and another suspect at the offender’s mother’s address.
Seeing the officers arrive, the violent pair became very aggressive and started to resist attempts to detain them.
PC Symonds was punched in the face by one of the men and had to use PAVA spray to get him under control.
PC Swann had managed to get one handcuff on her suspect in the struggle, and despite having partial control of him, he continued to be aggressive even after PC Symonds administered another dose of PAVA spray.
It gave enough time for PC Swann to use her Taser on the man, who was only subdued when backup arrived.
Norfolk Police Federation secretary Sam Hawkins said: “These men were big, burly, violent offenders, so PC Swann and Symonds had to think on their feet and help each other out to get the job done.
“The fact that the suspects carried on struggling despite having PAVA and Taser deployed on them shows just how severe and violent this incident was.
“It was great police work, so our congratulations go to both officers for the bravery they
have shown. They fully deserve this nomination.”
The officers were originally nominated for the Police Bravery Awards 2020, which had to be postponed due to Covid-19.
The winners will now be announced at a ceremony taking place in London on Tuesday, 12 October.
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