The Orlando Sentinel
LEESBURG, Fla. — Leesburg’s SWAT team placed in the top 10 at the 25th annual SWAT Round-Up International in Orlando last week.
The competition pitted Leesburg against law enforcement from across the country and as far away as South Korea.
For the first time, the team from Leesburg performed well in the first event, in which officers trained themselves in a hostage-rescue scenario.
“We have very dedicated guys who trained really hard,” Leesburg police Lt. Chris Mullen said. “We put a lot of effort into it.”
The team placed eighth overall in a field of 67 teams. It also won first place for the best agency with fewer than 100 sworn personnel.
Chief Bill Chrisman thanked the team, which included Mullen, Sgt. Joe Iozzi, Cpl. Daniel Fought, Cpl. Charles Pinkston, Senior Detective David Robison and Senior Officers Josh Kendrick and Nick Brown.
“Their professionalism and hard work, much of which has been fine-tuned on their own time, is greatly appreciated and admired,” Chrisman said.
Copyright 2007 Orlando Sentinel