RTCIPF Saddened by TCI’s First Local Police Commissioner Stanley Eustace Williams’ Passing
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The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force expresses its condolences to the family of the late Stanley Eustace Williams, C.P.M, who passed away last evening, Wednesday 14th January.
Mr. Williams was the inaugural local Commissioner of Police for the Turks and Caicos Islands, leaving behind a significant legacy characterized by excellence, bravery, and dedicated service.
Having grown up in Grand Turk, Mr. Williams developed a strong interest in law enforcement at just 17 years old. He joined the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force as a Police Constable on July 1, 1959.
From 1960 to 1968, he served as a Beat and Patrol Officer on Grand Turk and South Caicos, taking on occasional assignments in the Family Islands while collaborating with the Special Constables’ Branch. In January 1968, he advanced to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Grand Turk.
That same year, he completed a six-week training program with the Royal Bahamas Police Force, where he acquired essential skills in fingerprinting, photography, and crime scene analysis.
This experience facilitated further growth; from October 1969 to February 1970, Mr. Williams participated in a Special Course for Overseas Officers focusing on General Police Duties at the West Yorkshire Constabulary headquarters in England.
Upon his return to the Turks and Caicos Islands, he was promoted to Corporal and assigned as Corporal-in-Charge in Providenciales, overseeing Immigration, Customs, and all police operations there until returning to Grand Turk in 1973.
In June 1976, Mr. Williams received a three-month overseas Command Course at the National Police College in Bramshill, England through the British Government’s Technical Assistance Programme. After returning in September of that year, he was elevated to Deputy Commissioner of Police responsible for operations within Divisions A and B.
While providing security for Barclays Bank on North Caicos, in December 1976, Mr. Williams heroically thwarted an armed robbery attempt but sustained injuries from six gunshots during this incident. In recognition of his extraordinary courage while serving in his role, he was awarded Her Majesty The Queen’s Medal for Brave Conduct.
On December 28, 1978, Mr. Williams took command of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force, a role he fulfilled with distinction for seventeen years.
Throughout his time as Commissioner of Police, Mr. Williams participated in various international courses, seminars, and high-profile conferences including training sessions with Scotland Yard's Metropolitan Police in London; engagements with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at Quantico; alongside collaborations with United States Southern Command members such as Coast Guard personnel and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents.
He also held office as President of the Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police for four terms. Under his guidance came initiatives like establishing the Police Band along with forming a Marine Branch initially situated at North Creek on Grand Turk, both key developments for the Force.
After thirty-six years devotedly serving his community through law enforcement duties, Mr. Williams retired on March 10, 1995.
Deputy Commissioner Adams said, “I enlisted in the RT&CIPF under former Commissioner Williams’s leadership. He exercised a firm style of leadership grounded in uncompromising discipline and absolute commitment to the policing mandate of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
“He saw every police officer as a component of a strictly ordered organization, where adherence to command, standards, and duty was non-negotiable. I believe that his leadership was driven by his belief in the importance of a disciplined police service as the cornerstone of public order and national security.
“His tenure is permanently recorded within the history of the organization, reflecting a Commissioner whose decisive command, high standards, and unwavering dedication help to shape the culture and operational posture of policing in the Turks and Caicos Islands.”