Smithfield announces new police chief
There's a new chief ready to protect and serve in Smithfield.
Wednesday, Mayor Andy Moore, the Smithfield Town Council, and Town Manager Michael Scott announced that Pete Hedrick will serve as the town's new police chief.
Hedrick will take command of the Smithfield Police Department on Monday, August 14th. The town plans to have an official swearing-in for Hedrick sometime in September.
According to a news relief from town leaders, Chief Hedrick has a long and distinguished career in law enforcement. He previously served as the police chief in Robersonville, NC since 2021. He retired after 28 years with the Lee County Sheriff's Office in Florida. He was a Patrol Commander and supervised more than 120 deputies.
During his years of service in Florida, he worked in numerous roles and received more than 45 awards, including twice being awarded the Florida Association of Narcotics Officer of the Year.
Hedrick has a Bachelor of Science Degree from Hodges University in Fort Meyers and has taken classes at both Western Carolina and North Carolina State University.
Town Manager Michael Scott release this statement about the new chief: "While the police chief search has been a rigorous and time-consuming process, we are extremely fortunate to be able to hire such a qualified and great human being to oversee our police department. I have great confidence that Chief Hedrick will bring new energy and ideas to the police department and will be a great leader and mentor for our officers. This is a great step forward not only for the police department but for the entire community."
As of 2022, Smithfield's population was a little over 12,000 people, according to US Census.
The town is located in Johnston County and as featured on ABC11, it's North Carolina's fastest-growing county.
WATCH | Booming Johnston County is NC's fastest growing
