‘Coffee with a Cop’ returns

The popular Coffee with A Cop returned for a second run at the Middle Road branch of McDonald’s Saipan, giving members of the public a brief chance to sit down with police officers and share a cup of coffee for one-on-one conversations.

According to Mable Ayuyu, executive assistant to the president of McDonald’s Saipan/Guam, Coffee with a Cop allows community members to approach police officers with any issues they may have or to just converse with the local police force.

“…they can discuss issues they may have within their neighborhood, or they can share their experiences working with cops, or thank the cops for their hard work. …There is no agenda, there is no formal presentation,” she said.

According to DPS highway patrol officer Norris Quan, he was approached by a couple of community members about the lack of enforcers.

“For example, there are a lot of cars now and people but the number of officers still remain the same as before,” he said.

Quan said the event could have been better if there was more public participation. One of the improvements he strongly suggests is to consider having Coffee with A Cop on the weekends.

Ayuyu said she was in favor of hosting the event on the weekend to garner more participation but the weekends tend to be the busiest for both McDonald’s and DPS. “We wanted to do it when it’s best for our business and for our cops…maybe we can explore hosting this on a weekend because I’m sure there will be more people during that time,” she said.

Although there weren’t as many community members involved as planned, this year’s Coffee with A Cop was larger in terms of officers because it involved other sectors in the law enforcement and public safety division like Division of Customs and the Department of Corrections.

DPS public relations officer Jackie Rae said that, because its Public Safety Awareness Week, it was decided that all sectors relating to public safety should join Coffee with A Cop.

“It’s just good to get to know your fellow officers in public safety,” she said.

DPS police officer Patrick Arriola said the event rids the notion that police officers are unapproachable and intimidating.

“It’s another way of sitting down normally as human beings…it’s an environment where we can just talk about life and talk about…law enforcement and for us to hear our community,” he said.