HPD Names Officer Conrad Bidal 2017 Top Cop

The Hawaiʻi Island Policed Department has named Officer Conrad Bidal the Department’s 2017 “Top Cop” by the Law Enforcement & Security Coalition of Hawaiʻi.

The prestigious award was presented to Officer Bidal on Thursday, Oct. 26, 2017, at the Hawaii Prince Hotel Waikiki during the 33rd Annual Top Cop Law Enforcement and Security Awards Banquet.

Bidal, a one-year veteran officer who is assigned as a patrol officer in the Puna District, was described in nomination papers by Capt. Samuel Jelsma as an officer who displays steadfast dedication to the job and a diligent work ethic, maintaining perfect work attendance from his date of hire.

Officer Bidal was recognized for his decisive and heroic actions at the scene of a Jan. 16, 2017, structure fire of Luquin’s Mexican Restaurant in Pāhoa town, that undoubtedly prevented loss of life or serious bodily injury to the occupants. At the time he was just two weeks into his solo assignment.

Responding to the midnight structure fire and being one of the first to arrive he noted that interior lights were illuminated on the second floor of the building potentially indicating that tenants were within.

Officer Bidal immediately began looking for and located an open door on the back of the building, disregarding his safety he ran into the building solo and began a methodical search for anyone inside.

Upon his first search of the building, he located four people still within their upstairs apartments apparently unaware of the fire; he alerted and safely evacuated each of them.

After clearing the burning building of occupants, he then conducted a secondary search to ensure it was empty and while doing so encountered previously evacuated residents who had re-entered the building in an attempt to gather personal belongings.

Officer Bidal was forced to re-evacuate the residents and as he completed this task the building became fully engulfed in flames.

Officer Bidal displayed extreme courage by facing increasing temperatures, smoke and flames during this second clearing of the building as the fire had spread to cover nearly half the building at that time.