No bigger star than one with good cause

The St. Anthony Police Department welcomed a new member to its “Crimes Against Children” task force Saturday.

Erik Estrada, who played the popular role of Frank Poncherello or “Ponch,” a California Highway Patrol officer in the 1970s hit TV show “Chips,” was sworn in as a reserve officer along with retired police officer Daryl Williams.

Estrada, who also became a sheriff in Bedford County, Virginia, in 2009, said he always wanted to be a police officer.

“My stepdad was a cop and he was a good guy,” Estrada said.

Estrada also said the best way to keep kids safe is to educate them.

“It’s a worldwide problem, human trafficking,” Estrada said. “The online sexual predator will take his time to groom a child on the internet. At this point, awareness is all you can do. At the end of the day, you’re aware and your child is aware.”

Estrada said the task force is working with new technology to store child profiles in an eye cloud system.

“The first 72 hours are crucial and the new system will help with giving police information on the child, such as hair color, thumb print and eye color, in order to help with the investigation,” Estrada said.

After Estrada was sworn in, he visited South Fremont High School in St. Anthony to sign autographs and take pictures with fans.

In 2000, Estrada was named the international “face” of D.A.R.E which is a campaign against drugs.

Estrada plans on continuing his work with the task force and is scheduled to come back in September.