Pubdate: Wed, 18 Jan 2006
Source: Red Deer Express (CN AB)
Copyright: 2006 Red Deer Express
Contact:  http://www.reddeerexpress.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2920
Author: Johnnie Bachusky

CITY GETTING ANTI-GANG SQUAD

Red Deer city RCMP, concerned over growing gang activity in the city, 
are creating a new Organized Crime Unit.

Funding for the new two-officer unit (OCU) is coming from the 2006 
policing budget, which is being put forward to the city today.

As part of the city RCMP's overall plan to crack down on organized 
crime, the detachment is also expanding its drug enforcement Street 
Team from six members to eight.

Red Deer city RCMP Supt. Jim Steele said the OCU will work in 
conjunction with not only the Street team but with the existing 
Criminal Intelligence Unit (CIU) out of the 55 St. building.

Steele said there is no significant difference between the two units, 
other than the CIU has a wider mandate around the area while the OCU 
will target the city.

He said the OCU will generate strategic information for the Street 
Team, and will be responsible for a portion of the tactical duties.

The OCU will also share intelligence information with police forces 
from other centres.

The new OCU has been part of the city detachment's business plan for 
the last few years and was identified as a key need for the city in 
the Crime Prevention and Policing Study, which was completed after 
extensive public input in 2004.

"The growth in the city has been phenomenal. It presents opportunity 
for the entrepreneurs but also the criminals," said Steele, who hopes 
to have the unit's team hired in April.

"We are seeing drug dealers coming from Edmonton and Calgary that are 
associated to known organized crime outfits. It is time for us to 
move in that direction."

Steele said Mounties have begun seeing organized crime operations 
spreading their tentacles from the bigger cities to smaller centres.

"Stony Plain, Spruce Grove, Sherwood Park and Airdrie are noticing 
that, and so are we," said Steele.

The Red Deer city RCMP detachment is a regular member police agency 
of the Criminal Intelligence Service Alberta (CISA), which has a 
mandate to facilitate the exchange of criminal intelligence between 
law enforcement groups across the province and the rest of Canada.

CISA has identified outlaw motorcycle gangs, Asian-based groups, 
aboriginal-based gangs, Eastern European-based groups and 
Jamaican-based gangs as the province's main organized crime groups.

The Hell's Angels have a chapter in Red Deer, and all other organized 
crime groups have at least established business contacts in the city.

Steele said all groups are being watched.

"Not necessarily because they are here but because they do some 
business here," said Steele.

Meanwhile, city officials are already viewing the new OCU initiative 
favourably, noting Red Deer's geographic location puts the city in a 
vulnerable position to attract organized crime.

"A gang in Edmonton can meet with a gang in Calgary and meet in Red 
Deer because of our location," said Colleen Jensen, director of the 
city's community services department, which oversees policing in the city.

"As Edmonton and Calgary take a more aggressive approach to gang 
activity then that gets pushed out and they go somewhere else for 
activity," she added.

"Because of our location being so central I think it puts us in a 
position where the opportunity is enhanced for gang activity here."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom