Olympia…Two law enforcement officials from Peru are in Washington for a month’s worth of training and will spend the final week of their tour receiving training in the Tri-Cities.

“This is a great opportunity both for our visitors and for our local law enforcement agencies to further the exchange agreement signed by our state and Peru in 2003,” said Sen. Jerome Delvin, R-Richland, a 26-year veteran of the Richland Police Department. “They have much to learn from us and we have much to learn from them.

“Law enforcement officials in both of our countries have constantly changing needs that we hope to meet with these exchange programs,” he said.

Last year, Delvin founded the International Law Enforcement Exchange Foundation, which is sponsoring the visit.

The delegation arrived last weekend and is spending this week with the Seattle Police Department. The group will visit with state officials in Olympia on Feb. 20 before going for more training at the Washington State Patrol training academy in Shelton. A week at the Criminal Justice Training Center in Burien precedes the group’s visit to the Tri-Cities.

The Peruvians will receive training with the Benton County Sheriff’s Department March 4-5, the Richland Police Department March 6-7 and at the HAMMER/Hanford training center on March 8 before returning home.