KOSCIUSKO COUNTY — Tony Ciriello, Syracuse, is among two people seeking the Republican nomination Wednesday evening, Sept. 16, for the position of county coroner.

Kosciusko County Republican Precinct Committeemen will gather at 7 p.m., in the old county courtroom, to cast their votes. The position became vacant with the resignation of Michael Wilson, who has been appointed Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory Fire Chief.

“I am seeking the office of coroner as I feel very strongly this is a very important office in Indiana. While not out in the limelight, this office is very professional and provides a much needed service to the families who suffer the loss of a loved one,” said Ciriello.

“My 22 years of experience as a deputy coroner, my 34 years of law enforcement and my 16 years of experience as the director of training for the Indiana State Coroners Training Board, training all coroners and deputies in Indiana how to do their job, has prepared me for this position as the coroner.”

Ciriello, who has served as Syracuse Police Chief for 10 years, has resigned his position effective Oct. 30 and will go into the private sector. His police career began as a jail officer for the Marion County Sheriff’s Department, a fire and arson investigator with the Indiana State Fire Marshal’s Office, and a patrol officer, D.A.R.E. Officer, shift supervisor and division supervisor with the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department prior to coming to Syracuse.

He has served as a deputy coroner for the county since 1993, becoming an Indiana certified medicolegal death investigator in 1998 and in 1999 he was hired by the state coroner’s training board to oversee state training and certification requirements. He is also a Center for Disease Control Certified Infant Death Investigator/instructor.

In 2014 he was appointed to the Governor’s Public Safety Committee to represent Indiana Coroners. The committee is operated by the governor’s chief of staff and includes Indiana State Police, Criminal Justice Institute, Department of Corrections, excise police, Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement, ACT chair and coroners.

He has served on the Indiana Department of Health Maternal Mortality Review Team, was coordinator for the U.S. Department of Justice “NAMUS” project (looks into and assists in identifying unidentified human remains); served as president of the Indiana Association of Chiefs of Police in 2014 and is presently past president of that association. In April 2014 he was appointed to the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice Advisory Board at Indiana State University.

Ciriello is a graduate of the Kosciusko Leadership Academy and the Indiana Police Executive Leadership Academy, serves on the Syracuse/Wawasee Chamber Board of Directors, Syracuse/Wawasee Rotary Board of Directors, moderator of the Kosciusko Youth Leadership Academy and Warsaw Breakfast Optimist Club. He is a precinct committeeman, vice president of the Kosciusko County Shrine Club and Shrine Circus.

He received the William Sudbury Memorial Leadership Award in 2012 from the Indiana Association of Chiefs of Police and in February he received the Sagamore of the Wabash from Gov. Mike Pence.