Sgt Sinko Will Head Police Detective Unit

By Andrew Gorosko

After serving as a patrol sergeant for more than four years, on July 1 George Sinko will become the police department’s detective sergeant, heading the eight-member detective bureau.

On the recommendation of Police Chief Michael Kehoe, Police Commission members earlier this month unanimously assigned senior patrol Sgt Sinko to the post, in which he will supervise long-term, complex investigations for the police department.

“I try to do a good job and hopefully that’s recognized… I was excited and honored that I was picked for the position. I’m looking forward to the challenge and the change,” Sgt Sinko said in a recent interview.

The detective sergeant’s vacancy occurred after Sgt Henry Stormer requested that he be reassigned to the post of patrol sergeant. Mr Stormer, who has served as detective sergeant since 1997, said he sought the transfer for family reasons.

Sgt Sinko said, “My goal for the first year is to familiarize myself with overall procedures, and also to build good working relationships with the detectives and officers assigned to that division.”

 Besides three detectives, the unit has three officers assigned to special duty in the public schools, and one officer assigned to work with the state police’s Statewide Narcotics Task Force.

 “I will be dealing with more specialized cases,” Sgt Sinko said of the complex and time-consuming investigations that the detective bureau handles. Such high-profile cases involve interaction and cooperation among various governmental agencies, he said.

The post will involve a combination of desk work and travel, Sgt Sinko said. He said he will participate in investigations, as well as supervise detective bureau members’ work.

Sgt Sinko said he will be reviewing open cases files with Sgt Stormer to learn the status of various ongoing investigations being conducted by the detective bureau.

Sgt Sinko said that he did not expect the detective sergeant’s post to open up, but after learning that Sgt Stormer was seeking a reassignment to the patrol division, he applied for the detective sergeant’s position because it provides an opportunity for career advancement. The detective sergeant works day shifts and evening shifts on alternating weeks.

The transition from the patrol division to the detective bureau should make for a nice change, Sgt Sinko said, adding that he is looking forward to new work responsibilities.

The Police Commission promoted Sgt Sinko to the rank of sergeant in March 1998. He had served as the police department’s youth officer from 1996 to 1998. He had worked as the police department’s representative on the Statewide Narcotics Task Force in 1994. He joined the police department in late 1989 and began work as a patrolman.

Earlier this year, Sgt Sinko did three weeks of college-level course work at the New England Institute of Law Enforcement Management in Brockton, Mass., in preparation for expanded managerial duties. Sgt Sinko has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven.

Sgt Sinko, 37, is married and has three children.