Courageous Newtown police cadet wins award for his actions which led to the arrest of a prolific offender

Tyler Brian, an active volunteer with Newtown Volunteer Police Cadets, has been commended by Dyfed Powys Police’s offender management unit for his actions which led to the arrest of a wanted offender.

In October 2024, an active police search for an individual that had reportedly stolen a television and was in possession of a blade was in progress.

Tyler on his way to work, spotted police vehicles and a helicopter circulating. In their search for the offender, officers spoke with Tyler to see if he had seen them.

Recalling the day, Tyler shared that after being unable to help the police in their search he proceeded on his way to work.

“As I arrived at the building, I happened to look at the CCTV monitor”,

In an unexpected turn of events, that quick decision to glance at the monitor led to him catching a “glimpse of the offender”.

Remembering the officer’s description, Tyler, just 15, decided to call the police.

“The right thing to do in this case was to follow the offender, due to my concerns of the danger to the community. I ensured I remained at a safe distance as I was clueless whether the offender was still in possession of the bladed item” he shared.

Remaining calm and observant, he provided a running commentary to the call handler, who ensured Tyler remained safe, until he met officers.

“Even though I knew that the police would be arriving shortly after they had received the phone call, my thoughts were with someone in the community getting hurt and not worrying about myself.”

Tyler, a cadet for only a year at the time said, “having had the different units come give inputs in our cadet sessions helped me. It gave me an understanding of how I could support the police and what was important to observe and relay.

“Learning the phonetic alphabet was really helpful when I was on the phone to the call handler.”

Undoubtedly, Tyler’s actions that day led to a significant arrest, putting the safety of others before himself. Showing bravery, immense maturity, and professionalism, Tyler was recently awarded Police Cadet of the Year, sponsored by CDW, at the Dyfed-Powys Police Force Awards, which was held at force headquarters recently.

“I was full of joy and excitement to be a finalist alongside two of my fellow cadets, who had also been recognised for their work in their cadet units.

“To be announced as the winner of the Police cadet of the year for the whole of Dyfed-

Powys left me speechless” he shared.

In his nomination for the award his Cadet Leader PCSO Melanie Ross said: “Tyler is always extremely willing to go above and beyond for volunteer police cadets and Dyfed Powys Police. He always goes above and beyond in his role as a police cadet and is an outstanding ambassador for policing in our communities.”

His parents have both shared how “extremely proud” they are of Tyler. 

Accompanying Tyler on the night, his dad described the moment as a “big honour” for Tyler.

From being shortlisted to winning the award, his mum was “beaming”. “I was really proud when Tyler told me what he had done, it was very brave, mature and responsible of him to act the way he did.

“This shows Tyler’s commitment to the police - he didn’t even really see this as anything out of the ordinary and just something that should be done!”

After reflecting on the night, and soaking up the moment, he said: “it was fantastic to see how much my work on the day of the arrest had been noticed and how much my work and effort in cadets was appreciated.”