The Queensland Police Service (QPS) is proudly celebrating the extraordinary careers and achievements of seven police officers and two members of the Queensland State Emergency Service (SES) who have been honoured with prestigious Australian Police Medals (APM) and Emergency Service Medals (ESM) as a part of the King's Birthday 2026 honours.
Awarded by the Governor-General of Australia on behalf of the Sovereign, the APM recognises a small number of officers nationwide each year for their distinguished service, acknowledging excellence in law enforcement, community safety, emergency service and governance, while the ESM recognises those who have rendered distinguished service as a member of an Australian emergency service.
This year, QPS officers from diverse unit and geographic backgrounds were acknowledged as APM recipients, including Chief Superintendent Marcus Hill, Detective Superintendent George Marchesini, Chief Inspector Tyler Crosby, Detective Inspector Lisa Scully, Senior Sergeant Ritchie Callaghan, Senior Sergeant R, and Sergeant Christopher Sullivan.
Two SES members, Acting Inspector and SES search and rescue coordinator Cindel Richardson, and Far Western Area Controller Mr John Wallace, were also recognised as ESM recipients.
Acting Commissioner Brett Pointing APM, who received the Australian Police Medal in 2008, extended his congratulations to the award recipients and acknowledged their contributions to the Queensland community.
"The 2026 King's Birthday awards represent the highest standard of policing, law enforcement and emergency service across the country, and our recipients embody the integrity, respect and courage the QPS is guided by," Acting Commissioner Pointing said.
"Their dedication to serving the community with compassion, professionalism and integrity reflects the very best of the QPS, and I proudly acknowledge their accomplishments.
"Their contributions across regional operations, frontline support, specialist roles, training and investigations directly strengthen the Service's ability to enhance community safety."
Aviation Capability Group Chief Superintendent Marcus Hill was acknowledged for his extensive operational leadership over his 40-year career, including leadership roles as officer in charge at Burketown, prosecutions in Mount Isa, a patrol inspector in Rockhampton, Commander of Protective Services and his current role within Aviation Capability Group (ACG).
As Chief Superintendent of ACG, he has strengthened the Service's ability to support rescues and emergency responses through the expansion of the QPS aviation fleet. Leading the Reform Implementation Taskforce, Chief Superintendent Hill has also delivered comprehensive reforms across disaster and emergency management agencies, ensuring seamless coordination, improved operational readiness and enhanced support for officers in high pressure environments.
Regional Crime Coordinator to Southern Region, Detective Superintendent George Marchesini, was recognised for his dedication to frontline policing throughout his career, including his leadership in youth justice, child protection, and illicit firearm crime and safety.
Across these teams, Detective Superintendent Marchesini developed initiatives and strategies to provide frontline officers with enhanced safety processes and decision-making tools, more effective information and intelligence sharing across units and agencies, and programs to support early intervention and reduce repeat offenders.
Chief Inspector Tyler Crosby was acknowledged for her distinguished career of more than 30 years, spanning frontline service and operational command across the Gold Coast, Townsville and Mount Isa, alongside corporate leadership roles within the Regional Operations and 100 Day Review portfolios.
Notably, Chief Inspector Crosby acted as Police Forward Commander during a seven-hour siege involving an active armed offender, conducted under remote and isolated conditions that presented unique operational challenges. Through disciplined command, innovative employment of resources and the coordinated management of negotiation and tactical assets, she resolved the incident without loss of life.
Beyond frontline policing, Chief Inspector Crosby has made a significant contribution to workforce development, designing and implementing systems that support officer wellbeing and statewide relieving opportunities, while actively mentoring staff to strengthen capability and career progression.
Ethical Standards Command Detective Inspector Lisa Scully was acknowledged for her 31-year career, which has included leading complex investigations into officer involved misconduct and critical incidents with integrity and transparency.
She has driven strategic reforms, including the Critical Incident Framework, now ratified in legislation, which provides guidance to manage critical police involved incidents, and provided key insights into illicit drug use to develop training and risk management initiatives.
Retired Senior Sergeant Ritchie Callaghan was recognised for his 36-year career in forensic investigations, disaster victim identification (DVI), and counterterrorism operations, including 27 years as a Scenes of Crime officer.
As state DVI coordinator, he has led more than 20 activations and most recently, developed and implemented the statewide Human Remains Retrieval Teams course, equipping trained officers to attend hazardous cases locally, reducing exposure to vicarious trauma for frontline staff.
Senior Sergeant R was recognised for his 39-year career with the QPS, 24 years of which has been with the Special Emergency Response Team (SERT) where he has worked to safeguard public and officer safety.
Meanwhile, Rockhampton Highway Patrol Sergeant Christopher Sullivan was recognised for his 39-year career, with 28 years of service spent in road policing.
During this time, he worked as a team leader for the Royal motorcades during the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, traffic control and evacuation operations during the 2019 bushfires at Peregian Beach, and hotel quarantine operations across two sites through the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sergeant Sullivan has remained dedicated to enhancing safety on Queensland roads, combining operational expertise, leadership, mentoring and community-focused initiatives to reduce road trauma and deliver enduring benefits and safety to the QPS and community.
Multicultural Affairs Unit Acting Inspector, Search and rescue coordinator and Volunteer for State Emergency Service (SES) Group Leader, Cindel Richardson, who received the ESM, was recognised for her 20+-year service to SES, through which she has pioneered training programs for search and rescue efforts, Disaster response, community preparedness, and supported recruitment and retention efforts.
Acting Inspector Richardson demonstrated exceptional leadership as incident commander during Tropical Cyclone Alfred in 2025 and Tropical Cyclone Marcia in 2015, supporting community safety and resilience.
SES Far Western Region Area Controller John Wallace was awarded the ESM for his commitment to SES for over three decades, coordinating volunteer capability, deployments and readiness across Southwestern and Far Western Queensland.
Mr Wallace has shown leadership in times of community crisis and supported numerous complex operations, including the 1990 and 1997 Charleville floods, the 2022 Brisbane floods, Cyclone Kirrily in 2024, Cyclone Alfred in 2025, and the 2025 Far West Queensland severe flooding event.
A career with the Queensland Police Service offers diverse roles, unique challenges, and the chance to make a real difference every day. From emergency response and crime prevention to community engagement and public safety, no two days are ever the same.
From our bustling cities to remote towns and pristine coastline, policing in Queensland offers a career and lifestyle as diverse as the communities you'll serve.
Looking for a career that stands for more? Stand with us in a challenging and rewarding career. Visit policerecruit.qld.gov.au to apply now.
