Fayetteville Goes With the Man It Knows as New Police Chief

Posted 4:57 p.m. Apr 11, 2007 — Updated 4:39 a.m. Apr 12, 2007

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — City officials announced Wednesday that Interim Police Chief Tom Bergamine will have the “interim” removed from his title and become the 365-officer department’s leader permanently.

Bergamine, whose 29-year police career has been with the Fayetteville department, met all the criteria the city had for its new top cop, City Manager Dale Inman said in announcing Bergamine’s appointment.

“I’ll work my hardest not to let anybody down. I’ll give it my best shot. I grew up here as a professional,” Bergamine said in the Bronx accent that belies his decades in Fayetteville. “I love the police department. I love this city. I love the citizens.”

Working with a consultant, the city had set out its most important considerations, and all involved continuity from work that Chief Tom McCarthy was doing before his retirement in February.

“Tom has instant credibility in this city,” Inman said of Bergamine. “From my years of working with law-enforcement professionals, credibility is one of the most important assets of any chief.”

“Thank you for allowing me the chance to lead this excellent force of men and women who work so hard every day on behalf of all the citizens of Fayetteville,” Bergamine said in a statement.

Bergamine joined the Fayetteville force as a patrolman in 1978 and began movingup through the ranks. He was assistant chief in charge of patrol operations when he was named interim chief when McCarthy left the job. Bergamine served as an Army military policeman before joining the Fayetteville department.

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