Captain Kevin Smith, Area II Commander, Meritorious Service Award-

Captain Smith was recognized for his career long conscientious dedication to duty and excellence in the realm of criminal investigative work. 

Most notably mentioned was a cold case death investigation from August of 1989, where a man was found dead in his home in Hamilton, Indiana, having been stabbed multiple times. A primary suspect was identified early in the investigation; however, the suspect had left the country and could not be located. In 2005 Detective Smith began working the cold case and relentlessly tracked the suspect for six years. Despite all odds, Smith located the suspect in Dhaka, Bangladesh, a city of over 14 million people on the other side of the world. It turned out that Bangladesh would not extradite fugitives, but while working with administrators at the American International School in Dhaka, Smith learned that the suspect would be travelling to India, a country that does extradite fugitives. Working collaboratively with many federal and international law enforcement agencies, the suspect was arrested in February 2011 and extradited back to Steuben County where he was found guilty of murder and sentenced to 40 years imprisonment in March 2014, twenty-five years after the murder.

The case above is just one example of Captain Smith’s persistent detective work as he has kept up with the advances in science and applied them to new investigative techniques. Between the years of 2005 and 2023, he played an integral role in the identification of one “Jane Doe” and the apprehension of several individuals accused of committing numerous murders spanning nearly fifty years. He is constantly perusing national media gleaning information about crimes and investigative techniques from around the nation.

Captain Smith’s actions and dedication to duty are in keeping with the finest traditions of law enforcement and reflect great credit upon himself and the Indiana State Police.

Master Trooper Kris Coffey, Trooper of the Year for District 22-

This award is presented annually to a trooper from each district that has achieved outstanding performance in the areas of traffic and criminal enforcement, case and crash investigations, community service, and who has exemplified the professionalism and integrity expected of an Indiana State Trooper. This is the second time Master Trooper Coffey has been named as the Trooper of the District for the Fort Wayne Post.  

Trooper Benjamin Walker,  Indiana State Police DUI Life Award, and the Top Five DUI Enforcement award- these two awards were presented in recognition for removing 157 impaired drivers off of our Indiana roadways in 2022.  Trooper Walker's enforcement activity led to him being ranked not only in the top five for DUI arrests, but specifically as the #1 DUI enforcer within the Indiana State Police.  Trooper Walker’s superior knowledge, expertise, ability, and work ethic were critical in keeping our communities safe here in Northeast Indiana.     

In previous years, Trooper Walker has been awarded as the Top DUI Trooper for District 22, but this is the first time he has been recognized statewide. His dedication to DUI enforcement is commendable and is in keeping with the high professional standards expected of anl Indiana State Trooper.

Trooper Richard Williams, Life Saving Award  Trooper Williams was presented a life saving award for medical assistance provided on the evening of July 7, 2022 at the Noble Hawk Golf Course in Kendallville. On that evening Trooper Williams responded to a call of an unconscious male at the golf course. Arriving on scene, he found a 72-year-old male laying on the ground. Williams assessed the male and found that he was unconscious, had gasping respiration and no pulse. Trooper Williams, along with Noble County Sheriff Deputy Chase Gibson, and Noble Hawk employee Mr. Benjamin Maggert all jumped into action and began performing CPR, properly applied and effectively utilized an AED to deliver a necessary shock to the patient, and then continued CPR until Noble County EMS personnel arrived and took over medical care.  Thanks to the actions of these first responders, the man was successfully resuscitated and survived.  Trooper Williams was commended by the department for his extraordinary conduct in saving the life of a fellow human being.