THERE are new hands on the reins at Warwick police department, as we farewell Inspector Greg Morrow and welcome Inspector Ben Marcus to the hot seat.

With a passion for motor bikes, Insp Marcus is no stranger to the region and is eager to jump into the role with a wealth of policing experience.

"I'm about going back to basics - crime and road trauma are my main focus," he said.

"That's what upsets people and that's what we need to address."

Growing up in South Brisbane, Insp Marcus decided to join the Queensland Police Force in 1988.

He went on to work at the Goondiwindi station, then out to Clermont, before heading back to the Southern Downs to work in Stanthorpe in 1996. But it hasn't all been blue uniforms and pounding the pavement for this cop.

Insp Marcus has dabbled in various fields within the police department.

"In 2001 - the day before the September 11 bombings - I joined the counter terrorism force in Brisbane," Insp Marcus said.

He then moved on to be a hostage negotiator, where his day-to-day job involved talking people down from the ledge of buildings and working strategically with hostage situations - not something all of us can say we do daily.

Insp Marcus also gained experience in the Justice Department and with emergency management before heading to Toowoomba, where he was promoted to inspector in 2009.

In 2011, he took on a teaching role at the police academy, sharing his knowledge in Incident Command Training with eager young cadets, but two years later, he found himself sliding back in the inspector's chair, here in Warwick.

"I am excited to take this district over," Insp Marcus said.

"Inspector Morrow has left it in a very healthy state, the staff are good, so it's all in really good shape."

When he isn't draped in blue, Insp Marcus enjoys spending time with his wife, Jo, and three children - one at university, one in high school and the youngest at primary school - at their hobby farm in Stanthorpe.

He is a self-confessed motorbike buff and can often be found smeared in grease working on bikes or racing around the paddock on one of his boy toys.