LEWISTON — Healthy Androscoggin leaders announced the recent hiring of Cpl. Tim Darnell of the Lewiston Police Department as the new alcohol investigator for Androscoggin County.

The position is a collaborative effort between Healthy Androscoggin and the Lewiston Police Department to lead the charge in enforcing underage drinking laws across the county.

In 2007, Healthy Androscoggin got a grant through the Maine Office of Substance Abuse and the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to create the alcohol investigator position. The purpose is to reduce underage drinking and develop universal enforcement practices among law enforcement agencies across Androscoggin County, the organization said. For the past two years, the position was held by Sgt. Robert Ullrich, who was recently promoted.

Darnell has been with the Lewiston Police Department since 1994. He has served as a Drug Abuse Resistance Education officer, working with elementary schoolchildren. He was also a school resource officer and a G.R.E.A.T. Instructor for Lewiston Middle School, and has participated in numerous underage drinking enforcement patrols.

Together with the Alcohol Enforcement Team, with representation from the Auburn, Lewiston and Lisbon police departments and the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Department, Darnell will oversee party patrols, officer training and compliance checks of liquor licensees throughout the county.