The new Pinelands police chief says she will continue to build partnerships with community crime fighters.
“As Pinelands police, we can’t do it alone, we require assistance from partners,” says Lieutenant Colonel Darleen Koopman, who took over from Lieutenant Colonel Anton van der Berg as station commander at the beginning of the month. Lieutenant Colonel Van der Berg retired at the end of March (“Pinelands police chief retires,” Southern Suburbs Tatler, March 21).
Lieutenant Colonel Koopman, from Blackheath, has 30 years of service in the police force, having started out as clerk at Nyanga police station.
She worked as a police officer at Parliament for four years and did stints at Cape Town Central, Camps Bay and Franschhoek police stations.
For the past nine years, she has been stationed at Kraaifontein police station.
“I have learned what it means to respect our community but also to make sure that our community is safe,” she said, adding that it was a big honour to be the Pinelands police chief.
“The most important thing is to instil in our members how important this work is so that they are well equipped to carry out their duties.”
