Curry County Sheriff John Ward announced Friday, October 16th that Sergeant Jason Thien has been chosen by U.S. Attorney General William Barr and the President of the United States to be awarded the Fourth Annual Attorney General Award for Distinguished Service in Policing-Field Operations.
Sergeant Thien was chosen for the award out of 355 other nominations across the United States, and Oregon’s U.S. Attorney Billy Williams will travel to Curry County and present the award to Sergeant Thien on behalf of Attorney General William Barr and the President of the United States. This ceremony would normally take place in Washington DC but due to Covid, it will have take place locally on a date and time yet to be determined.
Prior to Deputy Thien being promoted to Patrol Sergeant, Curry County Sheriff John Ward submitted a narrative on behalf of Deputy Thien in May of 2020 that got Deputy Thein into the nomination process with 355 other nominees.
According Sheriff Ward, “A widespread manhunt involving authorities in Oregon and California along with the U.S. Marshals Service was concluded on May 22nd around 5:00pm when Curry County Deputy Jason Thien arrested 41 year old Eric Appoldt, from Bakersfield, California.
Eric Appoldt was arrested on a homicide warrant following an incident in Kern County, California last February. His criminal history included attempted murder, robbery and battery on a peace officer.
Appoldt was found to have family connections in Portland, Oregon and the Oregon State Police alerted Curry County Sheriff’s Office to his warrant and potential presence in Oregon. All of our patrol deputies and detectives were notified of this information, but one deputy took it upon himself to go the extra mile to keep our community safe. Deputy Thien used every resource available to our office including social media, criminal justice information, property ownership records, and Trans Union resources to identify associates and a potential location for Appoldt on Hensley Hill Road in Port Orford within Curry County.
He then coordinated a covert approach on the suspect property and worked in cooperation with our deputies and the Oregon State Police to locate and apprehend Appoldt safely and without incident. Appoldt was booked into the Curry County Jail and would be returned to California to faces the charges against him.”
Sheriff Ward went on to say that “Deputy Thien would say he was just doing his job when he tracked down and lead the capture of this dangerous fugitive. What he won’t say is that he generally works alone on day shift providing service to our entire 1,600 square mile county and over eighty miles of the Pacific Coast Highway which attracts people from all around the world. His status checks are always followed by “thank you” and the countless people he contacts each week would never know they weren’t the most important person he served during his day. Deputy Thien does not let a stack of pending reports to be written bog him down or distract him from the important work of taking care of people with a smile on his face.”
“I am proud to supervise this incredible man of character and compassion.” Sheriff Ward said, “He makes our agency proud and challenges us all to be better deputies and neighbors.”
