Goodness trumps race for rescued policeman
He grew up in a Maori Samoan family in New Zealand, became a U.S. citizen and this week was reminded of how goodness can triumph over racial stereotypes.
Wihongi was the police officer wrestling with a white armed-robbery suspect Wednesday when a black man, Kevin Winston, came to his aid — just when the suspect got his fingers on Wihongi's gun and was trying to wrest it from the holster.
The man was taken into custody for investigation of aggravated robbery and aggravated assault on Wihongi, whose nose and face were bleeding so profusely during the altercation that he thought he had been stabbed.
Now Wihongi is feeling physically better and is particularly grateful to Winston for his help. Wihongi also sees the racial dynamic of the situation as typical of the diversity of American culture.
"It has been my experience that men are judged more on their character and not by the color of their skin," he said. "Good comes in all colors and likewise bad."
Wihongi, like many in the community, has been especially mindful of racial matters in recent days after a Samoan man, Alvin Itula, 35, died after a struggle with police in which officers used pepper spray, a baton and a Taser to subdue him.
Wihongi said he could not comment on the Itula case but did want to say something about the police officers in that situation.
"I have served with all four officers involved and they have and they would put their lives on the line for me," said Wihongi, an 11-year veteran of the Salt Lake City Police Department. "I am proud to be associated with them."
Wihongi, 38, was born in Auckland, New Zealand to a school principal father and schoolteacher mother and learned about America through television.
"All we knew about Americans was what we saw on TV," he said. "I wanted to come here to be either Starsky or Hutch."
Wihongi arrived in the United States at age 15 after his father's death, lived with an aunt in Southern California, served an LDS Church mission in South Carolina, and eventually joined the Orange County Sheriff's Office. After he and his wife began a family, they moved here.
"We felt Salt Lake City and Utah would be a good place to raise our large family and we have no regrets," he said.
In his work, he has served in many capacities: SWAT team, gang unit, fugitive detective, school resource officer and currently works with downtown mountain bike squad.
Wihongi has had guns pointed at him before while on the job and there have been other times when suspects have tried to grab his weapon.
Recent comments
Thank goodness that police was rescued and was not harmed. If it...
unknown | Jan. 1, 2008 at 9:13 p.m.
