A NEW police cadet leader has been praised after using her multilingual skills to help a distressed mum find her missing children.
Alina Plesea had only been at West Midlands Police for a couple of weeks when she thrust herself into assisting officers to find the two girls who had wandered off in Coventry.
The 20-year-old and her team of cadets were returning to the city’s police station, after helping at the recent Godiva Festival, when they came across a Romanian woman trying to communicate with officers.
Alina – originally from Romania – stepped in and was able to liaise with the woman to reassure her and get better descriptions of the youngsters who were aged under 12.
Officers and the cadets then set off to help trace the girls who were safely located soon afterwards, with Alina staying with the mother to support her.
Alina is currently doing a police internship with a team tackling cyber-crime during a year break from her criminology and psychology course at Coventry University.
She only started as a cadet leader this month and has made an immediate impact, helping to fuel her desire for a full-time career in policing.
Alina said: “Since I was a child I wanted to work in the police, and becoming a cadet leader seemed an ideal opportunity to get further involved.
“The cadets are inspiring young people who are so eager to learn and help others.
“We’d been at the festival speaking to the public, highlighting the cadets and other policing opportunities, when we saw the distressed woman on our way back to the police station.
“She was panicking and struggling to communicate with officers, but I recognised the language so offered to step in. I was able to offer her support, obtain more information about where they may have gone and thankfully they were quickly located and reunited.
“The cadets were all willing to help and just shows the kind of young people they are.”
She added she was looking forward to spending more time with the team and said it would be rewarding to help as they learn and develop new skills.
Anyone else wanting to make a difference as a police cadet leader can visit wmp.referrals.selectminds.com/jobs/cadet-leader-volunteer-1423 for more information.
