The actions of three Dunedin police officers who stormed a Waldronville house last year only to find the woman they were trying to save was dead have been recognised.
Constable Tim Coudret, Constable Simon Ray and Sergeant Jared Kirk were the first to respond to reports of a woman in trouble in Waldronville on July 3.
The trio had the option of waiting for the armed offenders squad to arrive but elected to go into the house to try to save Vicki Lee Warrington (48).
They found her dead and arrested a 23-year-old man who was later charged with murder.
At a ceremony at the Mosgiel Fire Station yesterday, Const Coudret, a police officer for nine years, was awarded the Otago Coastal Police Area Commander's Commendation recognising his courage, bravery and decisiveness.
Const Ray and Sgt Kirk received their awards at a ceremony in November.
‘‘It makes me proud to be a policeman,'' Const Coudret said.
‘‘It's not something that you deal with every day.
‘‘Without knowing it, you have done your job and you know your training has kicked in.''
He was not scared that night, but anxious.
‘‘We had very limited information about what we were dealing with.
‘‘It's the fear of the unknown.
‘‘Even today, it's still something that sort of sits in the back of my mind.''
When spoken to by the Otago Daily Times by phone yesterday, Sgt Kirk said he was proud to have received the award.
‘‘It was a tragedy ... [but] I'm pleased to be recognised for it.
‘‘At the end of the day, I was just doing my job and anyone else would have done it.''
Const Ray was not available for comment yesterday.
The man charged with Ms Warrington's murder was ruled unfit to stand trial in the High Court at Dunedin on February 3.
The court heard Ms Warrington, who had a ‘‘strained'' relationship with the accused, died as a result of blunt and sharp injuries to the head and neck after being beaten with a table and slashed with a kitchen knife.
The attack took place following a disagreement.
The court heard the accused was found in his bedroom by police, listening to music.
Otago Coastal area commander Inspector Jason Guthrie presented Const Coudret with the award and said it was ‘‘outstanding work''.
‘‘What they did in the end was very courageous,'' Insp Guthrie said.
‘‘They would have been justified in waiting for specialist teams like the AOS.
‘‘They successfully cleared the address and found the dead woman.
‘‘I'm really proud of what they did. It's reflective of the really selfless approach our men and women take.''
