The Town of Winnsboro will continue a few weeks longer with an interim Director of Public Safety following a decision by Winnsboro Town Council to postpone the appointment of a new candidate to the position.

Town manager Don Wood said the council announced last Monday that they wanted to meet with him one more time before a decision is made.

“It will be on the next meeting’s agenda, and a few days later I will announce a name,” he said.

The five applicants Wood has to select from are as follows:

Greenwood resident Ricky Gibson has been employed with the Department of Public Safety in Greenwood for the past 27 years. He currently serves as the Troop Two Chief Executive Officer, assisting the Troop Commander with the overall functionality of Troop Two operations.

Major John Seibles with the Winnsboro Department of Public Safety is requesting a transfer from his current position to the position of Chief. Seibles served as jail administrator for the Fairfield County Detention Center from February 1992 until March 2002. He has also worked with the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office, Winnsboro Police Department and South Carolina Department of Corrections. In 2009, he became a Certified Interior Firefighter through training at the South Carolina Fire Academy.

Bernard McDonald, a deputy with the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office, has more than 33 years of law enforcement experience at the state and local level. He has been employed with the FCSO since August 2009. Prior to that, he worked for the South Carolina Department of Public Safety Highway Patrol from 2001 to 2009.

A second transfer request is from Deputy Chief of Public Safety Freddie Lorick. Lorick currently serves as WDPS interim director. He has more than 31 years of law enforcement experience and more than 15 years supervisor experience. He has served as Deputy Chief for almost eight years.

Lugoff resident Dennis Keith Ray has served as the State Law Enforcement Liaison with the South Carolina Office of Highway Safety in Blythewood since September 2007. He is also a volunteer fire fighter with Pine Grove Volunteer Fire Department in Lugoff and the Camden Fire Department. In the past, he has been employed with the South Carolina State Transport Police and Camden Police Department

Minimum training and experience for the position are a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice with 10-15 years of experience in law enforcement and fire supervision, with at least five years at the management level, or a combination of training and experience. Applicants must have also completed courses as the state’s Criminal Justice Academy and Fire Academy, have a valid S.C. driver’s license and live in or either plan to become a resident of Fairfield County.