Medal of Bravery

• Awarded on: April 4, 2007
• Invested on: February 29, 2008

Detective-Sergeant Maxime Paquette, M.B.
Medal of Bravery

On the night of January 18, 2006, while pursuing a suspect, Detective-Sergeant Maxime Paquette risked his life to save the man from a cliff in Saint-Constant, Quebec. Abandoning his vehicle, the suspect continued on foot and found himself in a quarry. He became trapped on a snow- and ice-covered cliff some 30 metres high; any move he made could have lead to a fatal fall. Detective-Sergeant Paquette, who had followed him, climbed down the rock face and joined the suspect on the cliff. With only two thin ropes held by two of his colleagues at the top of the cliff preventing him from falling, Detective-Sergeant Paquette grabbed the man under the arms, and fighting strong winds, rain and the cold, remained in that precarious position for over 45 minutes. Exhausted and almost ready to let go, Detective-Sergeant Paquette and the suspect were then rescued by firefighters and ambulance workers who had arrived at the scene.