The work carried out by a forensic expert at Cumbria Police to help tackle crime in the county has received international recognition.
Ralph Henderson, the force’s Digital Forensic Unit Office Manager, received an award for digital excellence at a ceremony in the United States honouring people working in justice worldwide.
Ralph was up against nominees in his category from law organisations in Brazil, Florida and Kansas.
He was named the Digital Bridge Builder winner at the Cellebrite Digital Justice Awards, held in Washington DC and broadcast on the Law and Crime Network YouTube channel.
The category recognises outstanding initiatives or individuals who have used digital tools to connect or support law enforcement.
Ralph's attendance at the event was funded by Cellebrite.
PICTURE CAPTION: (left to right): Cellebrite's Senior Vice President of the Americas, Nicole Cordova; Ralph Henderson; Sean Doyle, Senior GovTech Manager with Amazon Web Services
Ralph received the award for work on delivering the Cumbria Cellebrite Guardian project.
This is a cloud-based solution to manage digital device examination and cloud-based remote viewing.
It offers inbuilt remote viewing to all officers, keeping them in the areas they police, speeding up investigations and negating unnecessary travel, unnecessary download periods, saving on officer hours, wear on vehicles – and thereby improving the service to the public.
Ralph said: "I'm truly honoured to receive this recognition and award, but this was far from a solo effort, many departments in Cumbria Constabulary have worked extremely hard to deliver this solution."
Detective Superintendent Andy Myers, Head of Forensic Services at Cumbria Police, said: “This award is well-deserved.
“We’re extremely proud of Ralph, the work he carries out and this achievement. He has received this award on behalf of Cumbria while up against international colleagues.
“Ralph plays a pivotal role in digital forensics at Cumbria Police and carries out essential, unseen work to ensure we provide the best possible service to victims of crime and the wider public.
“This award also demonstrates how Cumbria Police is consistently staying at the cutting edge and punching well above its weight when it comes to digital forensic working and technology, all to the good of our communities.”
The awards evening celebrated winners from a pool of dozens of nominees who were then voted on by a panel of digital forensics and investigative subject matter experts.
Thomas E Hogan, Cellebrite’s chief executive officer, said: “This is our premier event for celebrating and honouring those who go above and beyond to protect their communities, nations and businesses."