WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) – Wilmington’s new Chief of Police, Ryan Zuidema, brings nearly three decades of law enforcement experience to his new job, gathered as he rose up the ranks in the Lynchburg (VA) Police Department. Zuidema joined the LPD in 1997, straight out of college, held many jobs over the years before he was named chief there in 2018. It took a lot for him to be lured away from the Virginia mountains, but Zuidema says Wilmington’s coastal location and larger police department were pretty good selling points.
“It’s a place that offers a great place to live, offers a lot of amenities,” Chief Zuidema said in an interview with WECT. “Researching not just the area but the department, there are some really great people here, in the police department as well as the community, and I felt like I could come here and hopefully make a difference.”
Zuidema did not have plans for a law enforcement career while growing up in western New York. In fact, he had set his sights on a career in finance when he enrolled at the State University of New York at Brockport…