Top cop Raymond has passion for service

The freshly minted LASCO/JCF Top Cop for 2023, Woman Constable Jayann Raymond, is not ruling out her chances of one day ascending to the post of police commissioner in the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).

Swarmed by cheerful colleagues, who were all eager to get a photo with her after her crowning moment on Friday, Raymond thought for a careful second when asked about aspirations for the top job.

“Anything is possible,” she said, gracefully.

A member of the JCF for eight years, Raymond walked away with the prestigious LASCO Chairman’s Award during an elegant and delightful affair inside the AC Marriott hotel ballroom in New Kingston.

Raymond, who is assigned to the Area Five Headquarters, told The Gleaner after the ceremony that the moment felt very unreal.

“I’m elated. I feel honoured, and it has been a pleasure serving the Jamaica Constabulary Force and the people of Jamaica. This is so unreal. I am just so eternally grateful and I look forward to continue serving the people of Jamaica,” she said.

She noted that when members of the JCF serve, they should do so with passion, adding that she is committed to the cause – “a force for good – always!”

Raymond is very instrumental in police youth service and the judges, in arriving at a decision, noted her deep passion for community engagement.

As Area Five youth club coordinator and assistant to the community and security territorial officer, the judges said she positively impacts the growth and connectivity of her community and safety and well-being of its citizens.

“Her dedication extends beyond her daily duties … . She also has been influential in launching new police youth clubs and facilitating their family empowerment discussions,” read Senior Superintendent of Police Stephanie Lindsay, who was the master of ceremonies.

The judges also said Raymond has an impressive array of training and knowledge, which spans various areas of policing, including traffic, court procedures, criminal investigations, and general policing.

Raymond told The Gleaner that she intends to use her platform to replicate what she has started in Area Five – which consists of St Andrew North, St Catherine South, St Catherine North and St Thomas – in police youth clubs islandwide.

In her acceptance speech, which brought everyone to their feet in a standing ovation, Raymond proudly said she is a woman of action.

She was awarded $150,000 and a host of other prizes.

The judges noted that the finalists were competent and that it was a difficult task arriving at a winner.

ELATED

The first runner-up, Constable Nickroy Neish, who, among other accolades, assisted in delivering a bouncing baby boy inside a police unit on January 9, 2021, was happy with the recognition.

“I’m feeling elated, excited. It was a wonderful journey,” Neish, who is attached to Area Three, told The Gleaner. “There are over 12,000 rank and file members and for me to place second, it’s a great achievement.”

The competitiveness of the awardees was evident as there was a tie for third place, which went to Corporal Aljuray McKenzie and Sergeant Florezel Thompson.

McKenzie told The Gleaner it was an honour and privilege to be a finalist for the top award.

“Just to be able to represent brand JCF in this manner and to also be a part of the LASCO Foundation. I hope that the LASCO family and the JCF will continue this partnership,” he said.

His more senior colleague, Thompson, said that with more than two decades of service under his belt, he felt good being a finalist.

“After 25 years, to keep up with the changes and remain relevant in the JCF – and we have a number of competitors from different areas, different branches – and to find myself in the top three is really a good feeling,” he told The Gleaner.

Woman Sergeant Allison Holness and Corporal Lenworth Mott, fifth and sixth place, respectively, round out the Chairman’s Award finalists.

The awards, through a partnership between the JCF and the LASCO Chin Foundation, is the brainchild of the late LASCO founder Lascelles Chin, who passed away on May 27.

James Rawle, executive chairman of the LASCO Affiliated Companies, said they are considering rebranding the Chairman’s Award as the Las Chin Award.

Rawle said the organisation is proud to continue recognising exemplary police officers.

Divisional awards were also presented yesterday to 156 police officers across the 19 police divisions.

The 2022 top cop, now Sergeant Rohan Smith, from the St Ann Police Division, told the awardees: “Once a top cop, always a top cop.”