Congratulations to the 22 graduates of Arizona State Trooper Academy Class 554! 

On Thursday, August 1, 2022, Colonel Heston Silbert addressed the graduates, presented their badges and read them the Oath of Office at their graduation ceremony at Living Word Bible Church in Mesa. 

View the graduation ceremony for Class 554 here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5-ZVTGFeSc

The Gang & Immigration Intelligence Team Enforcement Mission (GIITEM) is a statewide multi-agency task force led by the Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) Gang Enforcement Bureau. The mission of GIITEM, in collaboration with citizens, partnered agencies and intelligence resources, is to suppress criminal gangs and transnational crime.

On September 15, 2022, while patrolling in Avondale, AZDPS GIITEM detectives detained and arrested an 18-year-old male suspect who fled from them in a residential area and was found to be in possession of suspected fentanyl pills.

On April 21, 2007, Deputy Philip A. Rodriguez of the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office was killed in the line of duty in a single-vehicle collision on Interstate 40 in Kingman. Deputy Rodriguez was just 21 years old.

In keeping with tradition, Deputy Rodriguez’s name was engraved on the Arizona Peace Officers Memorial at Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza in front of the state capitol complex in Phoenix.

Do you know what to do if you’re involved in a minor crash on an Arizona highway?

If the incident doesn’t involve serious injuries and the vehicle(s) involved can be driven safely, you should move your vehicle out of travel lanes as soon as possible. The safest option for you and crash responders is to move your vehicle completely off the highway to a parking lot, side street or gas station. At that point, you can safely exchange information with any other drivers, take photos, and wait for law enforcement and/or a tow truck if needed.

It’s off to retirement for the last in-service Crown Victoria at the Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS). After going for a special “farewell” patrol shift in Phoenix recently, this classic cop car assigned to our Agency Support Division was stripped of its police equipment and delivered to state auction to begin a life of leisure.

On Monday, January 2, 2023, AZDPS Air Rescue was requested by the Gila County Sheriff’s Office (GCSO) to assist with the rescue of a motorist stranded in flood waters in Tonto Creek. GCSO reported the driver of a pickup truck drove around road barricades before getting caught in fast-moving flood waters.

Congratulations to recently retired Colonel Heston Silbert, who was named 2022 Chief of the Year by the Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police (AACOP) today!

Colonel Silbert was honored during the AACOP Meeting and Luncheon held in Mesa this morning, January 27, 2023.

On Friday, March 17, 2023, Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) Sergeant Tom Simon retired after 30 years of dedicated service to the State of Arizona.

Sergeant Simon’s fellow motor troopers escorted him and his family home for his final “10-7”, his last radio sign-off before retirement. That final call was received by Misty Knutson, a dispatcher in our Operational Communications Bureau and the daughter of Sergeant Simon’s close friend and fallen AZDPS Officer Douglas Knutson.