SANFORD — Earlier this fall, a Sanford police officer, hoping to earn the trust of a mentally ill, homeless man, got out of his cruiser and spoke with the man for 45 minutes as the rain beat down on both of them.

A detective got a phone confession from a man who held up York County Federal Credit Union in January 2013. He was hiding out in Manchester, New Hampshire, and a manhunt ensued in that city, but four days later, the perpetrator turned himself in to Sanford Police. Convicted, he is serving a 10-year prison sentence.

Two officers on patrol just two weeks ago answered a call and found a man had overdosed and was in full cardiac arrest. The two performed CPR until medical personnel arrived, and the man lived.

A man wearing a face mask and a beanie flashed a handgun and held up a 7-Eleven in February 2013. There was no forensic evidence, but detectives examining surveillance video noticed some distinct features about the shoes, mask and gloves the robber wore. After a lot of pavement pounding and knocking on doors, a man was arrested and is now serving an eight-year prison sentence.

These situations, and a whole lot more of them, earned 10 Sanford Police officers honors from Police Chief Tom Connolly on Tuesday.

“Thank you to all of you who do this job,” Connolly said. “And please keep up the good work.”

Four patrol officers ”“ Joseph Jourdain, Eddie Murphy, Everett Allen and Jared Archambault ”“ earned the individual Chief’s Award. The Criminal Investigation Division earned a Meritorious Unit Commendation for their work solving robberies, burglaries and drug crimes over the past two years. The CID is made up of detectives John Flewelling, Sarah Howe, Chad Allen, Eric Small, supervisor Detective Sgt. Matt Jones and Court Officer Rick Bucklin.

As to the CID’s work, Connolly put the success ”“ solving burglaries, thefts, arsons, robberies, serious child abuse cases, and three high profile drug seizures, among others ”“ down to team effort and individual effort.

He called it good police work and plenty of luck, and pointed out that the detectives, “go out there and beat the bushes and make your own luck.”

The police chief pointed to a confession Flewelling had obtained when interviewing two teen girls, who falsely claimed they’d been the subject of an attempted kidnapping.

And Connolly praised the work of police and drug agents who last week raided a Calvin’s Way home, arresting several people and putting an end to what he described as “a thorn in the side of the community for several years now.”

Jones, the supervisor, took over the CID unit in December 2011.

“I’m very proud of this bunch,” Jones said. “I love working with them.”

As to the patrol officers, Connolly noted the dogged determination of Archambault, who solved a vandalism case, and Murphy and Allen, who saved the overdose victim. And he spoke of Jourdain, who befriended the homeless, mentally ill man and eventually got the man to check in to a shelter.

Jourdain, in an interview following the awards presentation, said his conversations with the homeless, wheelchair-bound man eventually clicked, and the man, with some wariness and reluctance, accepted his help. Jourdain provided some clothing he had at home, and others pitched in with help, too, like employees of the Family Dollar store in the Mid-Town Mall. Jourdain raised some cash through family and friends, and purchased a specialized wheelchair for the man, who had a specific medical problem, and as the temperatures dropped, finally convinced him to go to York County Shelter in Alfred. Jourdain said he has learned that the man has since left the shelter, but doesn’t appear to be around locally.

Jourdain said every one in the department and others, like the store employees, checked on the homeless man; his situation brought a community of folks together. He called the work with the man a group effort.

Jourdain pointed out that one time, when the man was still living out in the elements, his own family was making soup in their kitchen and his 6-year-old asked if they could take some to the homeless man, and so they did. And the family, along with some high school students, will fetch another homeless man’s belongings this weekend and help him move into a Sanford Housing Authority apartment.

“It’s too easy to get jaded in this job,” said Jourdain, pointing out that sometimes, folks are viewed as just another bum or drug addict.

“Everyone’s got a mother, father or brother. They’re somebody to someone,” he said.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or [email protected].