By Jennifer Gomori, POJ Editor

Jacob Alexander Biek obtained a Criminal Justice degree, completed Police Academy, and works as a pilot and airplane mechanic in addition to starting his first law enforcement job.

“He’s a pilot and he flies jets, not little single prop planes,” said Wayne County Regional Police Academy (WCRPA) Director Anthony Mencotti. “He’s instrument trained and he’s also a mechanic. He’s only 24 years old, but really a sharp guy.

“He started to work at an airport when he was 16 and went up in a plane with his boss and fell in love with it. He went through school, got certified and went back again.”

Biek obtained his pilot’s license while in high school. “I fly a couple private jets around for a gentlemen I work for,” he said. “Eventually, I do want to fly commercial. I was looking at being a pilot for Customs or Border Patrol. I want to build up a little more experience before I do that.”

The ambitious academy cadet graduated May 18, 2022 and was honored with a Richard R. Weiler Scholarship Award. The $500 award is given twice yearly at the discretion of the college police academy to graduates who have not been sponsored by any police agency.

“Academically, he stood out. He was in the top 10 people in the class,” Mencotti said. “He’s pre-service which means he was paying his whole way in the academy.”

Biek completed his Criminal Justice bachelor’s degree at Siena Heights University and earned the second highest score in Emergency Vehicle Operations. He was one of nine pre-service cadets in a graduating class of 54.

“I thought it was a big help to get (the Weiler Scholarship Award) and it kind of surprised me that out of 54 people that graduated, I was the one chosen above other people,” Biek said. “It meant a lot to me in that way.”

He was hired as a full-time Cambridge Township Police Officer, a natural transition for the son of veteran Officer Martin Biek.

“I started yesterday, but I’ve been a Reserve in the department since 2020,” Biek said just a week after graduation. “My father (Martin Biek) was a Police Officer and he retired out of Dearborn Heights after 30 years. He decided to get a part-time job in Cambridge Township and he works in the schools as a Resource Officer.”