NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione has officially unveiled the ‘The Curtis Cheng Centre – NSW Police Headquarters’ in Parramatta this morning in memory of fallen policing colleague, Curtis Cheng, NSW Police say.
Curtis Cheng was a Senior Accountant with the Finance and Business Services Unit and proud member of the NSW Police Force, who had worked with the organisation for more than 17 years.
On the afternoon of Friday 2October 2015, Mr Cheng was leaving work when he was callously shot and killed outside the Parramatta headquarters. He was survived by his wife Selina, his son Alpha and daughter Zilvia.
As part of this morning’s ceremony, Commissioner Scipione unveiled a plaque that officially renamed the NSW Police Headquarters building as ‘The Curtis Cheng Centre – NSW Police Headquarters’.
The Commissioner also dedicated a memorial plaque, in memory of Curtis Cheng, at the reflection pool in the forecourt of the building.
NSW Premier Mike Baird, NSW Deputy Premier and Minister for Justice and Police Troy Grant, and Attorney General Gabrielle Upton, joined Commissioner Scipione, and members of the Cheng family, during this morning’s services.
Commissioner Scipione said the policing family has paused today to remember a much-admired and respected colleague, almost one year on since his tragic death.
"Curtis was a gentle man in every sense and a friend to many, which made and continues to make the pain of his passing all the more acute," Commissioner Scipione said.
"We stand in solidarity with his loved ones, the heavy burden of his death lying all the more heavy on them as we all take stock and remember him today.
"The tragedy of his death reminds us that we are together responsible for the type of community we create, and that the way of life we all enjoy needs always to be built and maintained," Commissioner Scipione said.
"Curtis was a hard-working and unfailingly optimistic man, and if a positive is to be taken from the events that took place nearly a year ago, it’s to continue to defend the community that he held dear.
"I am privileged to be able to represent the NSW Police Force today in dedicating our Parramatta headquarters in honour of Curtis; a cherished colleague who will never be forgotten."
