A senior officer who has spent much of his career in national portfolios with the Australian Federal Police has been promoted to Deputy Commissioner and as the Chief Police Officer of the ACT.
Deputy Commissioner Scott Lee is the 17th Chief Police Officer of the ACT since Allan Watt was appointed to the role in 1979.
The local role was created after the 1979 Hilton Hotel bombing in Sydney led to the formation of the Australian Federal Police, which then was contracted to provide policing services to the ACT under a purchasing agreement.
Deputy Commissioner Lee replaces the popular, progressive and often outspoken Neil Gaughan, who officially retired from the role just over a week ago.
Deputy Commissioner Lee joined the Australian Federal Police in 1985 and has spent much of his 38-year career within the federal sphere, including portfolios of counter-terrorism, organised crime, money laundering, organised fraud, human trafficking, child sex offences, people smuggling, and foreign interference.
He is a former Assistant Commissioner of Counter Terrorism and Special Investigations Command and Assistant Commissioner Cyber Command.
He arrives at a challenging time with an increasingly junior workforce, wage negotiations stalled, other police jurisdictions actively campaigning to lure away his sworn staff, and two of his five police stations not operating.
He described his officers as being "pragmatic and resilient' in the face of these challenges.
For decades the role of Chief Police Officer went to an Assistant Commissioner but when Mr Gaughan took the role, the organisation structure was changed to place it at the more senior Deputy Commissioner rank.
ACT Police and Crime Prevention Mick Gentleman said he was confident that the new top cop's "depth of policing experience will be a great asset in leading our police force into the future".
"I would also like to put on the record my thanks for the commitment, dedication and service of outgoing CPO Neil Gaughan who led ACT Policing through a significant period of change, including the COVID-19 pandemic and I wish him well in retirement," he said.
Deputy Commissioner Lee said he was "looking forward to the significant responsibility that comes with leading more than 1000 people who work day and night to serve the Canberra community and keep them safe".
"Some of my first key priorities will be ensuring we continue to keep Canberrans safe, the health and wellbeing of our people, that we have the right facilities for our people to work in and that we are continually looking at ways that we can innovate and improve to be the best policing operation in the country," he said.
"I have worked in Canberra, different parts of Australia and in roles internationally. The ACT is very much where my family and I call home and it is a great honour to serve in this role."
