A spate of attacks left nine police officers from one Welsh force assaulted after responding to five different incidents during the weekend.
Officers with Dyfed-Powys Police were allegedly punched, kicked, bitten and spat on by people who they were trying to help between Saturday, February 15 and Sunday, February 15.
One Special Constable was bitten during her probation period and one officer and sergeant were kicked, punched and spat at after finding a missing person.
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The police officers were responding to reports of domestic assaults, harassment, a disturbance and a missing person and five arrests were made, with two charged for the alleged offences.
On one occasion, officers attempted to calm down a woman in distress in Carmarthen but she allegedly became irate and kicked out at one Special Constable and bit another. Another incident saw another woman allegedly bite two PCs while they attempted to arrest her.
After finding a missing person an officer and sergeant were kicked, punched and spat at and a PC was kicked while attending a report of an assault in Pembroke Dock. More officers were also assaulted after responding to reports of domestic disturbances.
One Special Constable who was on probation has been praised for "patience and composure" during the incident.
The incidents come after Carmarthenshire was named one of the ten most dangerous places to be a police officer in Wales.
Figures from the Home Office show that there were 102 assaults on officers between the months of June 2018 and the end of May 2019 placing Carmarthenshire as the ninth worst in Wales following Wrexham and Cardiff who were first and fourth on the list.
Chief Constable Mark Collins said: “Policing, by its very nature, is a challenging occupation, and officers do expect to be put in difficult situations. However, it is completely unacceptable that they should be subject to assaults while they are carrying out their duties – particularly when they are assaulted by the very people they are trying to help.
“Nine officers being assaulted as they respond to five incidents is shocking – and this doesn’t include the verbal abuse and near misses they face daily.
“We take these matters very seriously. For every officer who is assaulted, a plan is put in place to support them, whether they are able to remain on duty or not.
“Our view is that assaults on police officers and staff should be investigated with the same care, compassion and commitment as an assault on a member of the public. This sounds obvious, but too often our response to assaults on officers and staff can be rushed or treated as secondary to other offences.”
* An 18-year-old woman and one 32-year-old woman have been arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker following the alleged assaults at the weekend
