Officer Brayton Long will return to the Haines Borough Police Department while it hires a replacement for Officer Adam Patterson. Officer Long will start on Monday.
Brayton Long left the Haines Borough Police Department in May to start a tour business, but he will be back on patrol over the winter.
“I will be doing the exact same thing I was before,” he said.
“From catching dogs right up to if there’s any major cases, doing detective work.”
His return is a way to keep the department fully staffed in the time between Officer Adam Patterson’s departure and a new hire.
“You got somebody who lives here, I’ve got stakes in the community, and I know the job. So it’s a good fit and hopefully it will work out for everybody,” he said.
Long says he’s ironing his uniform in preparation. He has almost a decade of experience as an officer between Haines and Skagway police departments.
He said he will stick around as long as he’s needed, but he’s looking forward to continuing in the tourism sector next Spring.
“People are fun! They come to visit Haines to see the beautiful Alaska sights to do some Alaskas things. So just to be able to interact with people from all over the world, it’s… I want to say its exciting, but its a bigger word than that,” he said.
When his winter police work is over he will be back to van and electric bike tours.