Aiken County Sheriff Michael Hunt announced Friday that ACSO Capt. Eric Abdullah was awarded the Strom Thurmond Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement in a ceremony in Columbia, S.C.
The Late South Carolina U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond established the Awards for Excellence in Law Enforcement in 1983 to recognize outstanding achievements in law enforcement. The annual awards recognize those law enforcement officers in South Carolina whose performance demonstrate the highest ideals of integrity and protecting the public. The awards were designed to recognize one South Carolina law enforcement officer from each of four categories – city, county, federal and state.
In a Friday ceremony at the Non-Commissioned Officers Club on Fort Jackson, Capt. Abdullah received the Award for Excellence and was honored by South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster, United States Attorney Adair F. Boroughs and J. Strom Thurmond Jr.
Sheriff Hunt said, “He has done an outstanding job throughout the years building relationships with internal and external stakeholders by working harder than anyone I know and always models the way of a law enforcement professional.”
Captain Abdullah began his career with the Aiken County Sheriff’s Office in 2003. He has served in many roles, including patrol deputy, corporal, patrol sergeant, patrol lieutenant, and SWAT team commander. In 2013, he was appointed captain over the Special Operations Division and public information officer. In 2022, he also assumed command of the Uniformed Patrol Division.
