Exhibition at Max Webber Library Blacktown honours sergeants William Riley and Maurice McDiarmid

THIS week holds special significance for police across the country as those who have fallen in the line of duty are honoured.

Chief Inspector Bob Fitzgerald and Superintendent Gary Merryweather (front) wih officers Erin Connell and Jason Barbe at the exhibition.

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THIS week holds special significance for police across the country when those who have fallen in the line of duty are honoured.

September 29 marks National Police Remembrance Day in honour of officers whose lives have been cut short while performing their duty as a police officer.

September 30 is significant for the Blacktown community because it marks the murders of Blacktown officers Sergeant 1st Class William Riley and Sergeant 3rd Class Maurice McDiarmid at Toongabbie.

The exhibition is on at Max Webber Library.

A special exhibition is on display at Max Webber Library, Blacktown, featuring these two events.

A display at the library.

Sgt Riley and Senior Constable McDiarmid were fatally shot when they attended a home at Mimosa Ave, Toongabbie, on September 30, 1971, after reports that a man had shot and killed his brother.

“Both officers were posthumously promoted for their outstanding courage and devotion to duty,” Blacktown Chief Inspector Bob Fitzgerald said.

They were jointly awarded the Peter Mitchell Trophy and George Lewis memorial Trophy by the then Commissioner of Police, Commissioner Norman Allen for the Most Courageous Act by a member of the Police Force in 1971.