The Manitoba First Nations Police Service has launched their Crime Reduction and Enforcement Unit, or CREU, as a 1 year pilot project.
Darryl Hunter, Inspector of Operations, said the CREU's goals are to target specific issues within the 12 First Nations communities they police.
"So our main goal is to be proactive in reducing the amount of drug trafficking and other criminal threats such as gun violence and gangs, which is a huge public safety concern in our communities. That means we are developing enforcement strategies that result in arrests, drug seizures, gun seizures, at the same time we're connecting with our partners in our communities to address the health crisis substance abuse represents, and make our communities safer," said Hunter.
A news release from the Manitoba First Nations Police Service lists "intelligence-led policing and targeted enforcement" as a main focus of the CREU. Hunter said a main part of these strategies focus around communicating with other law enforcement agencies.
"Target enforcement model is based on gathering actual information and working with law enforcement partners by sharing intelligence on criminal activities and organizations," said Hunter.
The CREU was launched as a 1 year pilot project, Hunter said to hopefully prove the need for a CREU within the communities the MFNP serves.
"Our priority is to demonstrate [the CREU's] impact on public safety for our communities that we serve and the province overall. So during this time we're going to be gathering data, documenting our success stories, to demonstrate the benefit of having the CREU," said Hunter.
Since the launch of the CREU earlier this month, they have already assisted in several operations within the MFNP. Click here to view their news releases.
