A 39-year veteran detective who has overseen some of Victoria's biggest homicide investigations and the founder of a specialist division to fight cybercrime are among five Victoria Police members recognised in the King's Birthday honours.
Four Victoria Police officers are this year receiving the Australian Police Medal which recognises distinguished service by a member of the force.
One member has been awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia.
Detective Inspector Dean Thomas, currently head of the Homicide Squad, has led countless high-profile criminal investigations.
They include the fatal mushroom poisoning of three people at Leongatha in 2023 and the breakthrough arrest of a man over the 1977 Easey Street murders.
Earlier in his career he was part of Taskforce Lorimer, set up to investigate the 1998 murders of Sergeant Gary Silk and Senior Constable Rodney Miller at Moorabbin.
Detective Inspector Thomas joined the force in 1987, working across metropolitan locations such as Dandenong and Casey CIUs and regional areas including the Latrobe Valley where he served with the crime investigation unit and as local area commander.
He has had key roles in multiple specialist teams, his first of three tenures with the Homicide Squad starting in 1992 and was in charge of the Armed Crime Squad from 2018 to 2021.
Detective Inspector Thomas has never wavered in his desire to serve the Victorian public and contributed to countless local community programs.
He is a highly versatile and experienced leader, consistently demonstrating integrity and insight with a history of achieving results and seeking out challenging work.
Assistant Commissioner Jane Welsh established a specialist division within Victoria Police to deal with cybercrime.
The initiative included a team dedicated to investigating crime involving cryptocurrency, the use of advanced capabilities to identify victims and the expansion of digital forensic laboratories in regional Victoria.
Her leadership strengthened covert online investigation into child abuse through the Joint Anti-Child Exploitation Team, which sees Victoria Police and AFP officers team up to protect vulnerable victims and hold offenders to account.
Ms Welsh became a police officer in 1988 aged just 19.
Her career has included operational policing, prosecutions and detective roles across Melbourne's west plus several years with the Homicide Squad where her cases included the Silk-Miller murders.
Ms Welsh's contribution to strengthening Victoria Police's ethical health has come through roles as a detective at Professional Standards and more recently performing the role of discipline inquiry officer.
Currently leading the portfolio to support Victoria Police's workforce, Ms Welsh chairs the organisation's first ethics committee which safeguards the use of artificial intelligence in policing.
Outside of Victoria Police she has served as chair of the Women's Legal Service Victoria which aims to address discrimination of women in the legal system.
Inspector Paul Hargreaves has had an extensive 37-year policing career, working across emergency management, local area commands and most recently leading a specialist unit tackling farm crime including the theft of livestock and machinery.
This work has included the first DNA livestock prosecution ever in Victoria and enhanced community and industry confidence through consistent, proactive engagement.
Inspector Hargreaves has provided invaluable leadership during major incidents such as alpine rescues and bushfires, in December 2019 working alongside a handful of fellow officers to safely evacuate residents of Cudgewa near the NSW border when the tiny town came within the path of an out-of-control blaze.
He also played a key role in the response to the fatal shooting of two police officers at Porepunkah in August last year.
Known for his calm, assertive demeanour, Inspector Hargreaves is a role model within the force who delivers operational excellence and fosters strong, enduring partnerships with the community.
Detective Senior Sergeant Danny Travaglini has more than 35 years of operational experience including close to a decade specialised in dealing with street gangs.
As officer in charge of the Gang Crime Squad he was relentless in holding violent offenders to account and bringing world's best practice to Victoria Police, his work co-ordinating international gang conferences commended on two occasions.
Detective Senior Sergeant Travaglini took up a position with the Homicide Squad in 2023, continuing his youth gangs focus which in 2024 saw him travel to the UK on a Blue Ribbon Foundation Tynan-Eyre Memorial Scholarship to examine evidence-based best practice to deter knife crime.
He has led Victoria Police's response to several gang-related deaths including a 2023 shooting outside a Keilor cafe and the deaths of two boys at Cobblebank in September last year.
Detective Senior Sergeant Travaglini is steadfast in his ultimate goal of preventing such violence from happening in the first place.
Protective services officer Sergeant Mohammed Shabbir Alam is receiving the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to the community through emergency response organisations.
PSO Sergeant Alam has been a member since 2013, served as an instructor at the Victoria Police Academy and worked to encourage people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities to join the force.
His work in this area has included serving as acting chairperson and secretary of the Victoria Police Muslim Association and being a mentor for both the Victoria Police Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Employee Network Council and African Employee Network.
Outside of Victoria Police, PSO Sergeant Alam has volunteered with St John Ambulance Victoria, the State Emergency Service, Australian Red Cross and Ambulance Victoria.
He has also served in the Australian Army where he remains an army reservist with the Royal Australian Corps of Military Police.
Quotes attributable to Chief Commissioner Mike Bush:
"Each of these officers, be it dealing with some of Victoria's biggest homicide cases, being at the forefront of tackling online crime or supporting their communities in times of crises, represents the very best of Victoria Police.
"They are dedicated, they are determined and they do their work without seeking recognition or reward.
"I am especially proud some of this year's recipients are also being recognised for work outside of Victoria Police which shows just how committed our members are to making this state a better place.
"We congratulate them on this prestigious and much-deserved honour."
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