Greek Australian crime scene officer making her mark in Melbourne

Every day, Leading Senior Constable Teina Kambouridis steps into the aftermath of transgression scenes crossed Melbourne—charged with the delicate task of preserving the truth hidden successful the smallest details.

She photographs, documents, and collects important DNA and fingerprint grounds to guarantee it is preserved and presented accurately successful support of investigations – work that ultimately helps detectives solve crimes and unafraid convictions.

“It decidedly requires an oculus for detail,” Kambouridis told Neos Kosmos, reflecting connected her 15-year travel with Victoria Police. “You person to beryllium the ‘eyes’ astatine the scene, making sure thing is missed, and collecting each available grounds to assistance investigators see oregon exclude suspects.”

Kambouridis moved from Halkidiki to Melbourne astatine 19, bringing with her a determination to service and support her caller community. She encounters victims regular and knows she is often gathering them connected 1 of the worst days of their lives.

“It tin beryllium challenging, but astir victims are relieved to spot constabulary respond,” she said. “We talk to them, explicate the process, springiness transgression prevention advice, and try to assistance them done what is often the hardest acquisition of their lives.”

Crime Scene Services be a wide scope of incidents: burglaries, vehicle crimes, murders, unexplained deaths, and sometimes post-mortems. Their archetypal precedence is ever to unafraid and sphere the country to forestall contamination of evidence.

“Being capable to portion together grounds to assistance investigators successful solving crimes, while besides reassuring victims, is what I emotion most,” Leading Constable, Teina Kambouridis, says astir her work. Photo: Victoria Police/Supplied

“Being capable to portion together grounds to assistance investigators successful solving crimes, while besides reassuring victims, is what I emotion most.”

Joining the constabulary was ever “in the backmost of my mind. I wanted to bash something to assistance the assemblage and assistance people,” Kambouridis recalled, describing her idyllic puerility by the oversea successful Halkidiki earlier moving to Australia with her family. Both parents, of Greek heritage, had grown up successful Australia and aboriginal moved to Greece to rise their children.

“I had conscionable finished precocious schoolhouse when we came here. I enrolled to bash a grade successful Biological Sciences and while I was studying, I decided to try and articulation the police. But I didn’t tell anyone,” she laughed.

It was lone erstwhile she was accepted that she shared the news.

“My household were acrophobic astir maine deferring my studies, but erstwhile they realised I could prosecute my involvement successful subject done policing, they were supportive.”

Strong-willed and community-minded, Kambouridis pursued her extremity of becoming a detective, an accomplishment she is astir arrogant of, and aboriginal expanded into forensic fields.

“I similar being challenged and learning caller things, and Victoria Police has so galore antithetic avenues. I didn’t implicit my university degree, but I’ve gained different qualifications done the occupation that person led maine to where I americium today.”

For her, the astir rewarding portion has been the friendships formed on the way. “The friends you make, particularly successful the Academy, go similar family. That support is everything.”

Resilience successful this job, she says, is essential. “You spot a lot. Sometimes good, sometimes bad. Having resilience helps you support going and work done things. A strong support web is besides truly important,” she adds.

The occupation has taught her important lessons astir the world.

“People travel successful galore antithetic types and I person learned to accommodate my connection style to suit antithetic audiences,” Kambouridis explains.

She has besides travel to realise that she is stronger than she thinks and that “when I acceptable my caput connected something, I tin really execute it.”

Although Kambouridis has faced situations that required her to stay alert and mindful of her surroundings, she says she has ne'er truly felt afraid. In her existent relation successful particular, “we usually get aft the incidental has occurred, to cautiously analyse the scene.”

Even disconnected duty, vigilance stays with her.

Photo: Victoria Police/Supplied

“Most constabulary officers don’t truly switch off. I’m very mindful astatine home, and I promote my household to beryllium vigilant too, since I americium alert of the things that hap to mundane people. You can’t fto it take implicit your life, but it’s ever bully to person that awareness, astatine the backmost of your mind,” Kambouridis tells Neos Kosmos.

Off duty, she is conscionable arsenic dedicated, this clip to her two young children.

“They support maine very busy. We’re ever retired and about, playing, cooking, staying active.” Her daughter, the eldest, beams with pride. “She tells maine she wants to beryllium a policewoman too,” Kambouridis smiled.

While policing has agelong been seen arsenic male-dominated, she believes things person shifted.

“Modern-day policing is beauteous equal. Opportunities person been the aforesaid for maine arsenic for anyone else.”

When she does find clip to relax, she admits to enjoying true transgression shows and podcasts.

“Like galore people, I conscionable find it fascinating, seeing however investigators get to the bottommost of something and the antithetic techniques they use.”

Her curiosity and passionateness for forensics person besides taken her into specialist areas implicit the years. She has worked successful detective roles, and successful units such arsenic the CBR/DVI (Chemical, Biological, Radiological/Disaster Victim Identification) and the Clandestine Laboratory Squad, which investigates amerciable cause manufacturing operations.

Her proposal to young radical considering a vocation successful policing?

“First, summation arsenic overmuch beingness acquisition arsenic you can. Travel, larn astir antithetic cultures, unrecorded your life. It’s ever bully to person a spot of beingness acquisition earlier joining the Police. Work connected your resilience and radical skills. We talk to radical each single day, so being capable to pass well is essential. And supra all, beryllium passionate astir helping people. Just spell for it.”