A hero cop who swapped Paisley for Western Australia has been promoted to one of the region’s most senior jobs.
Senior Sergeant Chris Martin, 38, has been named Officer in Charge of Geraldton Police Station.
The dad-of-three was hailed a national hero in 2018 when he led a rescue mission to save a stricken grandmother who was stranded in remote outback for three days.
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The story hit national headlines after then Sergeant Martin and his team found 74-year-old Karen Neu in remote bushland after she got lost and crashed her car.
Sn Sgt Martin joined Strathclyde Police in 2004 but was drawn to Australia when he spotted an advert looking for officers in 2008.
The former Glennifer High pupil has since climbed the ranks and has now been handed the reigns at Geraldton Police Station.
His appointment at Geraldton again made local news outlets as he outlined his plans for the city on Australia’s west coast, north of Perth.
“As a young, single, 26-year-old guy from Scotland, I fancied a bit of a change, a bit of an adventure given I had seen a lot of Australia on the TV and different films,” Senior Sergeant Martin said.
“I must admit it did take a while for me to adjust to being in Australia and especially in the outback, living remotely and away from my family. I was introduced to the Australian Aboriginal Culture and 45-degree heat, not to mention the language barrier.
“I quickly created a pseudo-Scottish Australian accent, just to make my life that little bit easier.
“It’s fair to say that living in Roebourne would be considered tough by Australian cop standards, however to a boy from Corsebar Drive, it was like living on another planet.
He added: “All of a sudden I was confronted with spiders bigger than my hand and my new best friend, cockroaches.
“I eventually moved back to Perth city in 2010 and was posted to Northbridge, which is basically the equivalent to Sauchiehall Street in Glasgow, so again another complete change of scenery.”
He was then posted to Mullewa, a tiny town 550km north of Perth, where the rescue incident took place, before moving to the town of Geraldton.
Following his latest appointment, he has set his sights on reducing youth crime and building closer relations across the community following his appointment.
He met his wife Karen after he arrived and they have since had three children.
His mum Pat still lives in the Paisley area.
