The AFP will today join police across Australia to pause for National Police Remembrance Day, honouring those officers who have given their lives in service to the community.
The commemoration holds a heightened and sombre significance this year following the recent brutal murder of two Victoria Police members in Porepunkah on 26 August, 2025.
While the names of those officers - Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart-Hottart - will be added to the National Police Memorial in Canberra next year, one touchstone will be added this year alongside the 831 fellow officers who are honoured.
That touchstone commemorates Tasmania Police member, Constable Keith Anthony Smith, who was fatally shot when attending a private residence on frontline duties in North Motton, Tasmania, on 16 June, 2025.
Constable Smith was 57 years old.
Held on 29 September each year, National Police Remembrance Day commemorates officers from jurisdictions across Australia and the South-West Pacific region who have been killed in the line of duty, or as a result of their duties.
Services are being held across Australia today to remember the lives that have been lost, and to acknowledge the impact this has had on their family, friends, and the wider community.
AFP Commissioner Reece P Kershaw APM said National Police Remembrance Day was a vital occasion to recognise the unique nature of policing and the dangers police faced in their daily pursuits.
"Today, it is important to reflect on the very rewarding, but also very dangerous, job police perform all across Australia - the lives they touch through their service, the communities they protect, and the countless ways they make a difference," Commissioner Kershaw said.
"Policing offers unique challenges and sometimes means the brave, selfless men and women who serve do not go home to their families.
"We honour not only Constable Keith Smith, as well as Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson and Senior Constable Vadim de Waart-Hottart, but all police officers immortalised at the National Police Memorial through our daily actions keeping the Australian community safe.
"Each name on the Memorial represents a member who has served with distinction and is revered not only for the sacrifice made while protecting their communities, but also for their service to the nation."
The National Service for National Police Remembrance Day will be held at the National Police Memorial in Canberra at 4.30pm on Monday, 29 September, 2025. Members of the public are encouraged to attend. The Service will also be livestreamed on Vimeo.
