Polk Times

City Of Haines issued the following announcement on Jul 38.

TWO HAINES CITY POLICE OFFICERS 

HONORED AT TRINITY CHURCH HERO DAY

Trinity Church of Haines City honored local first responders Sunday during the church’s Hero Day celebration. Two Haines City Police officers, Johnny Brown and Gedrick Vargas were honored. Pictured with the officers are Haines City Commissioner Omar Arroyo, City Manager Jim Elensky, Vice-Mayor Jayne Hall, Pastor Charles Anderson and his wife Judy Anderson. Also pictured is Haines City Mayor Anne Huffman making remarks on behalf of the city.

Their nomination letters are included here:

OFFICER JOHNNY BROWN

Officer Johnny Brown’s middle name ought to be “Community.”

Officer Brown serves the Haines City Police department in the Community Oriented Policing Unit,  referred to as the COPS unit. But his love for helping others began before he even joined the unit. He was a volunteer with the Heartland for Children Foster Care Program.

On his very first day with the COPS unit, he asked if he could take a little time during his shift to deliver a box filled with brand-new baby clothing to a new foster parent.

Officer Brown had a colorful idea when he came up with the idea of allowing the students of Eastside Elementary School paint a police car in honor of Autism Awareness Month. The children will likely remember the experience for the rest of their lives and recall it as a positive interaction with police officers.

You can often find Officer Brown helping out at area food pantries, handing out food and making people smile. Just recently he encountered a homeless person while on duty and before the interaction ended, the person walked away with a Subway lunch courtesy of Officer Brown.

Officer Brown began his career as a Corrections Officer with the Glades County Sheriff's Office. He then continued on to the Hendry County Sheriff's Office, Palm Beach County Schools Police, and has served the Haines City Police Department since July 2021.

If any law enforcement agency is looking for a way to bridge the gap between the community and its department, they need to look long and hard for someone just like Officer Johnny Brown.

OFFICER GEDRICK VARGAS

Officer Gedrick Vargas’s quick thinking and bravery helped apprehend a dangerous carjacker who fatally wounded an elderly citizen. Vargas’ actions put his own safety at risk but stopped the suspect before he could harm anyone else.

On February 18th, 2022, Officer Vargas responded to the area of Patterson Road and Highway 27 in reference to a robbery. While en route, information was received that an elderly victim sustained multiple stab wounds to the upper torso. The suspect fled the scene in the victim’s blue Toyota Matrix and headed northbound on Highway 27.

After learning of this information and making sure other officers were tending to the victim’s wounds, Officer Vargas and deputies from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office located the vehicle traveling in the Posner Park area. As the vehicle pursuit continued, Officer Vargas saw the driver throw what appeared to be a knife out of the driver’s side window.

In fear that the driver’s actions would cause great harm to others, Officer Vargas passed the violent suspect, placing his patrol car directly in front of the suspect’s vehicle and applied his brakes.

After the suspect stopped the stolen car, a foot chase ensued and Officer Vargas captured the suspect and took him into custody. The victim of the carjacking died later of his stab wounds.

It is courage, such as what was displayed in this incident, that makes us proud of our officers' efforts every day.

Original source can be found here.