Tragedy as officer, 46, found dead by colleagues at Ermington Police Station from gunshot wound

Police do not believe there are any suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of the officer found in a room by colleagues at Ermington Police Station.

A police officer has been found dead at Ermington police station. Picture: Monique Harmer

A respected NSW Police Detective has died after a shooting incident at Ermington Police Station in Sydney west.

Police do not believe there are any suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of the officer, who was found by colleagues about 12.30pm on Monday in a room at the station on Lister Ave.

Early indications suggest the discharge of a police issue firearm is believed to have caused his death.

A senior Homicide Squad Detective with more than two decades experience, in a statement, NSW Police said they had declared a critical incident as part of their standard procedures following the man’s death.

A respected NSW Police Detective has died after a shooting incident at Ermington Police Station in Sydney west. Picture: Supplied

“The 46-year-old Detective sergeant from a specialist command was on-duty at the time and initial inquiries suggest there are no suspicious circumstances,” the statement read.

“A critical incident investigation has been launched by detectives from South West Metropolitan Region, who will prepare a report for the Coroner.

“The investigation will also be reviewed by the Professional Standards Command and independently oversighted by the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC).”

It is understood the officer had been working on an investigation out of Ermington Police Station.

Support services have been made available to officers who were at the station at the time, as well as other colleagues at NSW Police Headquarters in Parramatta, where the Homicide Squad is based.

The tragic incident comes almost two years after the suicide of Sergeant Matthew Theoklis at the Sydney Police Centre in Surry Hills in November 2020.

Officers and investigators gathered at Ermington Police Station on Monday in the wake of the detective’s death. Picture: Supplied

Policing suicides have also gained attention after the death of a number of Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers in recent years.

Between 2017 and 2019 five AFP officers took their own lives while on the job, as well as a retired officer in 2020.

At the time of him joining the AFP, current Commissioner Reece Kershaw said he wanted to make sure the force’s officers were “supported with the right training, technology and equipment … and that the health and wellbeing of all staff is supported by the appropriate strategies and mechanisms.”