AFP Profile - Wade Jones, Canine Unit
With a love of dogs and the outdoors, having a job with the Australian Federal Police (AFP) Canine Unit is just about as good as it gets for Wade Jones.
‘When I first joined the police force I was immediately interested in the Canine Unit,’ Wade said.
‘I have had some other great jobs in the AFP, but I prefer to be outside than sitting behind a desk.’
Wade and his black Labrador, York, make a great team and have formed a special bond.
‘He’s energetic, fit, agile and strong—and raring to go each morning, which is a great motivator for me. He’s very methodical when searching and doesn’t need too much direction.’
Wade and York have been working together for 16 months, splitting their time between Canberra Airport and Parliament House.
‘When we both started our three-month course neither of us knew a great deal, but we learnt together. It’s a good feeling to see him evolve to the point where he can be sent into any environment and be able to detect odours, which in this case is explosives.’
The job does have its challenges.
‘Like humans, dogs have their off days and he does get a bit crazy sometimes. As a handler you have to be pretty strict and you can’t play around when you’re not working.
‘But when things go well it’s a real buzz.’
The pair was an integral part of the security for APEC in Sydney last year.
‘It was great to be at the front line. The dogs played a vital role during APEC. We had the important task of checking every area where dignitaries were going to be.
‘It all went well without a hitch and it was great to be part of something so big.’
Wade has also been involved in other major operations, particularly when he was Federal Operations in Sydney.
‘One of the most satisfying was an operation that involved a lot of surveillance and eventually netted around 100 kilos of drugs. It’s a good feeling knowing that you are really making a difference by stopping drugs hit the streets.’
Another operation led to the recovery of 34 kilos of Ecstasy and the apprehension of six offenders.
‘That was very satisfying because during the course of a search warrant at one of the houses I also located another four-and-a-half kilos of methamphetamines.’
Another challenging and satisfying role Wade has undertaken since graduating from the AFP’s recruit training in 2003 was a stint with the ACT Policing Media Team as a Liaison Officer.
‘That is such a fast-paced environment, where you are dealing with another side of the AFP. You get an insight into the corporate side of things, working with senior management, commanders and general duties officers.
‘It was a real eye opener for me because you are constantly balancing the needs of the organisation with the needs of the media.’
During his time there, the Media Team was involved in some high profile and cases which attracted media criticism.
‘It was difficult to deal with the criticism. As a police officer I was in the position of knowing how hard it can be out on the road and how quickly you need to make a judgment call.
‘Your natural instinct is to defend the police actions but you have guidelines to follow, especially when cases have to go through the judicial process and there is only a limited amount of information you can release.
‘But there were also times where we worked with the media to help identify offenders, so it works both ways.’
In his six years with the AFP, Wade has also worked in other areas as diverse as sexual servitude and tax fraud to burglaries and shoplifting.
‘What attracted me to the AFP was the wide range of jobs and the fact that it is global organisation. It continues to grow and evolve and I can see so many opportunities and varied roles opening up for me in the future.’
April 2008