Eighteen new officers have been sworn into the ranks of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary.

RNC Chief Pat Roche and Lieutenant Governor Joan Marie Aylward oversaw the event at the CLB Armoury in St. John’s yesterday, joined by the new recruits – graduates of the Atlantic Police Academy in PEI.

Top of the class, Constable Ella Smith says she knew from a young age that she wanted to join the Constabulary after touring RNC headquarters as a child.

“I actually knew an officer who (used to) bring me to the RNC when I was younger, so I got to go around and look …the horses, the forensics unit, all of that, and that definitely was one of the biggest reasons…why I wanted to be a police officer.”

The newly appointed constables will be assigned to coach officers with Operational Patrol Services in the Corner Brook and Northeast Avalon regions.

There are currently 21 RNC recruits attending the Atlantic Police Academy with another class scheduled to begin training in July.