Sgt George, Dunedin born and bred, retired yesterday after 40 years of service.
"It’s time to go, [I’m] getting too old," he said.
He began his career in Invercargill, working for seven years as a uniformed officer before transferring to Dunedin in the early 1990s to become a detective.
While completing his detective training he also earned a law degree from the University of Otago and became a prosecuting officer at the Dunedin District Court.
He said the biggest changes he had seen in the police during his time as an officer were that no-one smoked any more, there was a lot less alcohol consumed and there were a lot more women in the force — which was a good thing.
When he was a young officer in the 1980s, Sgt George was told to drive a police truck through a gang pad’s fence in Invercargill so firefighters could get in and control a blaze inside.
"It was quite funny because no-one told me that you were supposed to pull up to the fence and gently nudge it over."
He hit the fence at speed, knocking it over, and ended up well inside the property.
"The problem was I couldn’t reverse the truck out because there were police coming in and party-goers going out.
"So I had to stay where I was behind the wheel and I got a punch in the head from a bikie who was unhappy about their party being closed down on the way past."
Sgt George said it was an exciting "good old-fashioned dust-up".
Back then there was a lot more direct leadership in the force, he said.
"We got told in no uncertain terms by the senior cops if we’d made a mistake. But you learn from that."
About 15 years ago, there were a lot of problems with inner-city violence and a lot of police were put back on the beat with a particular focus on the Octagon.
Sgt George said he and his team came up with some simple but effective strategies to deal with the issue including intercepting unaccompanied juveniles and intoxicated people and encouraging them to go home.
"Looking back on it that was probably the most rewarding time on the street."
There had been a lot of ups and downs but he could not see himself doing any other job.
He had struggled with the general direction of policing of late but still very much believed in it as an institution.
"I think Dunedin is well served and long may it continue."
Sgt George will be taking July off to follow the British and Irish Lions rugby tour to Australia and is in no rush to get into another job.
