A City of London Police officer who was stabbed after intervening in a moped theft has won a prestigious Police Bravery Award.
DC Joby Reeve was named as the Region 8 (London) winner at the 24th national Police Bravery Awards on 18 July, hosted by the Police Federation of England and Wales. The awards, sponsored by Police Mutual, honour and recognise police officers who perform outstanding acts of bravery.
DC Reeve was off-duty when he became aware of a robbery taking place. Men on mopeds were attacking another man and trying to steal his moped. DC Reeve helped the victim, putting himself in danger by physically separating him from the suspects. Several of them tried to flee.
He grabbed a suspect in a bear hug to detain him but fell to the ground as another suspect pulled out a large kitchen knife and tried to strike his chest. The officer deflected it by kicking the man’s chest, but the knife plunged into his leg. The suspects fled, so DC Reeve checked the victim over for injuries before allowing the crowd of onlookers to help him.
When local officers arrived on the scene, DC Reeve had applied a bandage to his own leg and gave clear updates about his injury and what had happened, despite losing a considerable amount of blood.
DC Reeve later said: "My partner was with me and from her point of view – there was a car obscuring most of her view – she just saw the knife coming down towards my chest, and that what she saw – when you see that, it’s hard to erase that from your memory. As far as she was concerned I’d been stabbed, and a lot of people don’t survive that sort of injury. But luckily, it went into my thigh and that was the saving grace really.
"It’s a difficult thing to get over – it makes you hyper aware of certain incidents… At the end of the day you suffer mentally with it."
John Apter, National Chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales said: "These awards highlight the incredible bravery that police officers show every single day. DC Reeve demonstrated outstanding courage and dedication, putting the lives of others before his own without a second thought."
John Perks, Chief Executive Officer of Police Mutual, said: "For the past 11 years, Police Mutual is proud to have sponsored such an inspiring event in the policing calendar. It is a privilege for my colleagues and I to be able to show our respect for the exceptional bravery shown by police officers who risk their lives every day to protect the public and keep us safe. We hope that we can continue to play our part in helping improve the lives of the police family."
