Ministry provides funding to RCMP for permanent Crime Reduction Teams

The Ministry of Corrections and Policing is providing roughly $1.6 million to the RCMP to permanently expand the Crime Reduction Team (CRT) initiative in Saskatchewan. This funding will be used for 14 full-time team members made up of 10 police officers and four support staff. Funding for these positions is provided through the Provincial Policing Services Agreement, which funds 70% of all RCMP positions in Saskatchewan. These additional staff will comprise two permanent CRTs—one operating out of Prince Albert and one operating out of North Battleford—that will be established this fall. The RCMP will maintain a temporary CRT to ensure enforcement activities continue until the permanent teams are operational.

"The RCMP has seen great success with this project since they started the CRT as a pilot last February, and we're happy to support the establishment of these two permanent teams," Corrections and Policing Minister Christine Tell said. "We look forward to seeing the positive impact this program will have in Saskatchewan's rural communities."

The CRT's main goal will be to conduct targeted enforcement (also known as "hotspotting") based on intelligence, analysis of crime trends and consultations with community leaders. This may include high visibility patrols; tracking chronic offenders; tackling street-gang activity and executing arrest warrants.

"We have heard directly from our detachments and communities the value of the Crime Reduction Team. The team, made up of members with specialized enforcement and investigation skills, deliver focused, high-intensity policing to communities that need it most. Their efforts have yielded results, taking drugs, firearms and criminals off the streets of our Saskatchewan communities," said A/Commr. Curtis Zablocki, Commanding Officer, Saskatchewan RCMP. The CRT will work in partnership with other RCMP detachments and municipal law enforcement agencies to ensure a coordinated response to rural crime.

It will also collaborate with communities and other partner agencies to address root causes of crime and develop long-term solutions to ensuring community safety.

The CRT initiative began as a pilot program in early February. Since being established, it has executed 193 arrest warrants dealing with 384 Criminal Code charges. This includes charges against 26 known gang members and affiliates.