Five Minutes With Capt. Andre R. Tibbs

For Capt. Andre Tibbs, taking over at the was a return of sorts.

Tibbs, 52, was installed as the station commander in March,

Tibbs has held a wide variety of posts in his 20-plus year career with the county police. Among his many positions:  patrol officer at the McLean Station; Internal Affairs; Sergeant at the Franconia District; Polygraph examiner and supervisor; organized crime;  and second lieutenant at Reston and first lieutenant at Fair Oaks.

Tibbs, who has degrees from University of Maryland and George Mason, has also worked in police personnel, where he took part in hiring more than 500 Fairfax County officers.

Reston Patch spent five minutes with Tibbs recently.

Reston Patch: How do you like your new role in Reston so far?

Andre Tibbs: I love it. I live in Fox Mill, which is in the Reston District, so this is literally in my backyard.

RP: What makes the Reston District unique?

AT: Well, we have the Reston Town Center, which gives us a unique responsibility. We want to create a balance of safety and people who are respectful [to others at the town center]"

RP: What are some of the issues you are stepping into?

AT: I came in and immediately there were two bank robberies [on April 11 and May 12]. When I got here, there had not been a bank robbery in 11 months.

We caught the guy who we believe is a suspect in those robberies [after an Oakton incident earlier this month].  We did some good police work.

Incidents on the Reston trails are always an issue. We have stepped up our presence. In the last few weeks, we have had about six officers out there on bikes every night. We have not had a major incident during that time.

We always want to keep people safe.  Sometimes crime has to happen so we can analyze it, map it and find ways to deter it.

RP: What are some of your goals for the Reston District Station?

AT: We just finished a pedestrian campaign, notifying drivers and citizens to stop for cyclists. We are working on deterring underage drinking. One thing I would like to take as a personal challenge is traffic initiative for child safety. We would like to do another child safety seat check program.

RP: What is something unique that you bring to this job?

AT: I know so many officers. I took part in the hiring of 500 people, so everywhere I go, I know someone. But when I had the job of controlling the fleet, that was the toughest job. I was responsible for cars, other vehicles and property.