Just five months after announcing a $23-million expansion to B.C.’s Guns and Gangs Strategy, the Province, anti-gang units and local police agencies are making progress on a number of key measures meant to tackle gun and gang violence from all sides.

Items Completed Since July:

• Co-ordination work between police agencies throughout the province to facilitate the upcoming provincewide Firearms Amnesty that will run from Oct. 1-31, 2016: news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2016PSSG0121-001046
• Staffing of an additional Correctional Branch Central Monitoring Unit position in response to the enhanced electronic monitoring initiative.

Cross-government (in addition to the Guns and Gangs Strategy):

• Launch of the integrated Community Safety Initiative for the Williams Lake and Cariboo-Chilcotin region: news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2016PSSG0126-001155

Outreach:

• CFSEU-BC Community Engagement Teams attended more than 40 local events and interacted with well-over 13,000 Surrey youths and families this summer. They have a busy fall schedule of community events, through which they will share information and speak with parents and youths who may be encountering gang-related peer pressure. cfseu.bc.ca/end-gang-life/community-engagement/

Significant local enforcement announcements between July and August 2016:

• CFSEU-BC and Abbotsford police arrested and charged two men connected to the Townline Hill Conflict in Abbotsford: www.cfseu.bc.ca/two-men-charged-connected-to-the-townline-hill-conflict-in-abbotsford/
• Langley RCMP and the Lower Mainland Emergency Response Team (ERT) raided a Langley townhouse complex, recovering 25 firearms, ammunition and drugs: http://langley.bc.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=2117&languageId=1&contentId=47828
• Surrey RCMP, CFSEU-BC and the Lower Mainland ERT arrested six suspects who allegedly intended to discharge a firearm at two Surrey homes: http://surrey.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=2126&languageId=1&contentId=47684
• Kelowna RCMP executed search warrants that yielded 5.25 ounces of heroin, 8.75 ounces of cocaine, 2.5 ounces of methamphetamine and $21,000 cash: http://kelowna.bc.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=2087&languageId=1&contentId=47673
• Surrey RCMP’s Community Response Unit (CRU) was acknowledged for their work on reducing crime and increasing safety and security in Surrey neighbourhoods: http://surrey.bc.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=2126&languageId=1&contentId=47530
• Kelowna RCMP in partnership with the Southeast District ERT executed a search warrant on a West Kelowna residence, seizing several firearms and illicit drugs: http://kelowna.bc.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=2087&languageId=1&contentId=47353
• Kelowna RCMP arrested a man during a traffic stop, seizing 40 bags of suspected heroin and 27 bags of crack cocaine: http://kelowna.bc.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=2087&languageId=1&contentId=47297

Items Ongoing and Underway:

• Establishing a new Illegal Firearms Task Force (IFTF).
• Identifying specialized officers and staff who will form two new, 10-person gang disruption and interdiction teams within the Combined Special Forces Unit – British Columbia (CFSEU-BC).
• Staffing a new Office of Crime Reduction and Gang Outreach
• Surrey Crown counsel’s work to dedicate two full-time prosecutors and a paralegal to prioritizing cases linked to guns and gangs.
• The development of the Crime Stoppers initiative focused on firearms.

Cross-government (in addition to the Guns and Gangs Strategy):

• Developing a gang-exit pilot program for adults, to become operational this fall.

Local efforts to engage and inform parents and community members:

• End Gang Life school presentations by CFSEU-BC approximately every two weeks. To date, 42 presentations reaching more than 15,000 students, including every middle- and high-school student in Kelowna and Nanaimo. cfseu.bc.ca/end-gang-life/
• Youth & Gangs – A Parents Resource booklets available in English, Vietnamese, Punjabi, Tagalog, Somali, Arabic, Chinese, Korean and Spanish – soon to be available in Farsi and Hindi. cfseu.bc.ca/end-gang-life/end-gang-life-multilingual-booklets/
• The Surrey Wrap Around Safe Schools Program in partnership with the Surrey School District, Surrey RCMP and the City of Surrey to help keep at-risk youth out of the gang and criminal lifestyle – approximately 100 B.C. youths participating. http://surrey.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=73&languageId=1&contentId=8915
• The Surrey RCMP Parent Helpline at 604 599-7800 is available to parents who are concerned about their children becoming involved in illegal activities. http://surrey.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=1484&languageId=1&contentId=46508
• The City of Surrey’s Public Safety Strategy to be announced early this fall. http://www.surrey.ca/community/19149.aspx