The Maribor Police Directorate celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Mounted Police Unit at a ceremony in Kamnica on October 17, 2025.
The keynote speaker at the event was the President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia, Urška Klakočar Zupančič, and the event was also attended by the Minister of the Interior, Boštjan Poklukar, and the Director General of the Police, Damjan Petrič.
Director General of the Police also spoke at the ceremony: "In modern times of rapid technological progress many forget that animals have been man's faithful companions for thousands of years – first in everyday life, and then also in the service of security. And today, as we celebrate your work, our colleagues from the mounted police, we are particularly aware of this."
The beginnings of the mounted unit in this area date back to 1950, when a militia cavalry shortly operated in Maribor. 1985 is considered the beginning of the continuous operation and development of the mounted police, which continues to this day. That was when mounted police officers carried out their first patrol in Maribor, tracking down and arresting three escaped prisoners. The citizens of Maribor first became acquainted with the work of the Maribor mounted police officers at a meeting of scouts in the Stražunski Forest, as well as in the vicinity of the city, where they patrolled the hilly areas and preventing deviant behaviour in orchards, vineyards, and fields with their presence.
Mirko Ploj and Aleksander Thaler presented their collection of articles on the mounted unit’s history to commemorate its anniversary. In addition, acknowledgments for significant contributions to the establishment and launch of the Maribor Mounted Police Unit were awarded to Bojan Lunežnik, Hinko Frank, and Niko Šebart.
The mounted police demonstrated the diversity of their work with various demonstrations, in which they were joined by their colleagues from Ljubljana. They were also joined by service dog handlers.
Police officers from the Maribor Police Directorate displayed the equipment used by special police units, presented careers in the police force, the work of traffic police officers, and the field of criminal investigation techniques.
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