31 police recruits welcomed at Badge Ceremony today

(Ottawa) — The Ottawa Police Service (OPS) hosted a Badge Ceremony today to formally recognize 31 recruits hired in February 2024. The class was welcomed by Chief Eric Stubbs and Ottawa Police Service Board Chair Salim Fakirani.

The ceremony is an important part of recognizing the role of policing in the community and celebrating the individual successes of each officer.

The recruit class comes with a wealth of experience from their previous careers. These include Special Constables from Carleton University, OC Transpo and the OPS, and dispatchers with the Ottawa Paramedic Service, Gatineau Paramedic Service, the OPP and the OPS.  One recruit is a former CFL player, and some come to the OPS from Parliamentary Protective Service, the Canadian Armed Forces, and the Federal Government.

These recruits have volunteered with organizations that support our community’s most fundamental needs, making people feel supported in all aspects of their lives, including housing and food, and motivating youth to pursue education and sports.

Of the 20 men and 11 women who received their badges today, many have advanced education and degrees in police foundations, law, conflict studies, criminology, political science, social science, psychology, sociology and biopharmaceutical science.

While several recruits were raised in Ottawa and Gatineau area, others have ties across Canada and all around the world, including Calgary, Lethbridge, and Montreal, as well as various parts of Ontario like Mississauga, Brockville, Toronto, St. Catharines, Morrisburg, Kingston, Ancaster, London, and Prescott-Russell County. Internationally, some of the recruits have lived in China, France, the United Kingdom, Türkiye, Pakistan, and Lebanon.

In addition to English and French, 12 other languages are spoken by this recruit class. They include Arabic, Farsi, German, Hindi, Pashto, Punjabi, Russian, Tamil, Urdu, Spanish, Vietnamese and some Mandarin Chinese.

The Ottawa Police Service is hiring! For career opportunities, visit ottawapolice.ca. Follow our Recruitment Team on Instagram @ottawa_police_recruiting.

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 Through the Community Safety Data portal data.ottawapolice.ca, members of the public can view, download, and interact with data released by the Ottawa Police Service.

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