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RCMP adding new Tactical Armoured Vehicles
RCMP Emergency Response Teams across Canada could have new Navistar-built Tactical Armoured Vehicles (TAV1)by March. After testing in Ottawa in late fall, the first TAV1 went to New Mexico for ballistic and explosive testing. The new units can carry 11 members and mounts a gunner protection station on top of the vehicle.
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RCMP sorry for not catching serial killer Pickton sooner
(Jan. 28) At a news conference Friday, RCMP Assistant Commissioner Craig Callens said he wanted to tell the families of women killed by serial murderer Robert Pickton "how very sorry we are for their loss" and apologize that the force did not do more to catch the killer. Last month, Callens became the top RCMP officer in charge of B.C., where the 49 murders, according to Pickton, occurred in the 1990s and early 2000s. The apology came after months of testimony at a public inquiry into how the RCMP and the Vancouver Police Department handled - and mishandled - the missing women investigation. more>>
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To stop corruption, changes may be coming to US-Mexico border
(Jan. 28) The Obama administration is considering rotating Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents to other sites away from the U.S.-Mexico border, where Mexico's wealthy drug cartels have made inroads. In the past four months alone, four CBP employees have been arrested on corruption-related charges and another 132 CBP employees have been arrested since 2005 as a result of internal affairs investigations. more>>
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RCMP pilot ‘will always be a hero,’ family told at his funeral
(Jan. 27) Hundreds of Mounties in full dress, as well as U.S military officers, police, border and correctional officers, fire officials, and search and rescue workers attended the funeral service held in Surrey, B.C. for 46-year-old RCMP pilot Dave Brolin, who was killed last week in a helicopter crash while training. Brolin was a former U.S. Army pilot and lauded during the service as "an officer of the highest calibre" known for his "outstanding performance." He leaves behind a wife and two children. more>>
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Vancouver police failed to act swiftly and warn public, inquiry hears
(Jan. 27) Former Vancouver detective inspector Kim Rossmo agreed with a lawyer this week that police could have solved the case involving dozens of missing women and serial murderer Robert Pickton as early as 1999, three years before he was arrested. Pickton has been implicated in the disappearance of women dating back to 1991. Rossmo agreed with lawyer Cameron Ward that Vancouver police had key informant evidence about Pickton by 1998, along with mounting numbers of women vanishing from the Downtown Eastside. Rossmo, who worked in the Vancouver force for 21 years, tried to set up a "missing women working group" in 1998 but was shot down by Insp. Fred Biddlecombe, who dismissed the serial killer theory. more>>
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Zetas now Mexico’s largest drug cartel
(Jan. 27) Los Zetas, the most brutal of the Mexican drug cartels, is now the biggest, according to security consulting firm Stratfor in a report this week. At the end of 2011, Los Zetas operated in 17 states - more than half the country - while its rival, the Sinaloa cartel, had operations in 16 states. Los Zetas is composed of former special operations soldiers and "are quite effective in employing force and fear to achieve their objectives," the report said. more>>
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Canada could face native ’uprising’ if Harper doesn’t listen, says chief
(Jan. 26) Canada could experience an "uprising" similiar to the Arab Spring if Prime Minister Stephen Harper doesn't give a clear indication in his meeting with aboriginal leaders Tuesday that he's prepared to take their concerns seriously, warned Stewart Phillip, grand chief of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, Tuesday. "We must do better. The honour of the Crown and the very integrity of Canada as a nation is at stake," said Phillip. "Otherwise, an aboriginal uprising is inevitable." Hundreds of chiefs from across Canada are scheduled to meet with Harper for the first time since the Conservatives formed government in February 2006. Some chiefs are optimistic, while others are skeptical. more>>
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Police use of gun registry unprecedented
(Jan. 25) While the Harper government regards the firearms registry as obsolete and unreliable, a new RCMP report reveals that Canadian police services are using the database more than ever - in excess of 14,350 times daily. Since the Conservatives came to power in February 2006, police in Canada have more than doubled their use of the registry. Public Safety Minister Vic Toews has received a copy of the RCMP report. more>>
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Ontario govt. continues house-cleaning at ORNGE
(Jan. 25) ORNGE, the Ontario government's air ambulance service that has come under the microscope in the past month following reports in the Toronto Star about bloated management salaries, executive spending sprees, and delays in responding to emergency calls, has undergone further changes. Eighteen middle management staff have been cut as well as a charity program spearheaded by the former ORNGE president, Dr. Chris Mazza. Queens Park-appointed interim president Ron McKerlie said cuts have been made "in an effort to contain costs and to redirect our focus." more>>
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Customs and Border Protection report: Unmanned Aircraft System
(Jan. 25) A recent print and video report about Customs and Border Protection's use of drones along the U.S.-Mexico and U.S.-Canada borders is online and can be seen by clicking on more>>
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More guns in Canada now, but fewer owners: RCMP
(Jan. 24) According to the RCMP's 2010 Canadian Firearms Program report, Canadians own in excess of half a million more firearms than they did in 2006, but the number of registered gun owners is falling. Garry Breitkreuz, the Conservative MP who drafted the legislation to kill the long-gun registry, says his research — gleaned from comparing Canada’s firearms import and export data — shows there are between 16.5M and 21M guns in Canada. That's one for every two Canadians, roughly. more>>
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Border deal benefits to be experienced soon: DHS official
(Jan. 24) David Heyman, assistant secretary for policy at the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security, said Monday that Canadians will start this year to experience the benefits of the Canada-U.S. border deal. "There's dozens and dozens of pilot projects that are starting up this year that have to do with either trusted trader or trusted traveller programs that allow for expedited movement of either goods or people," he told Post Media News.
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U.K. spied on Russia using fake rock
(Jan. 23) Jonathan Powell, chief of staff under former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, recently admitted in a BBC documentary that his country's spy service had used a fake rock containing electronic survelliance equipment in Moscow to gather intelligence. The Russian government alledged six years ago that the "spy rock" had been planted by a British agent. Powell told the BBC it was "embarrassing", but "they [the Russians] had us bang to rights." more>>
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Great Lakes, Seaway under threat from pleasure boats: security report
(Jan. 23) A study commissioned by Defence Research and Development Canada says that any number of the millions of pleasure craft plying the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway could be used by terrorists to attack nuclear plants, international bridges, chemical factories, and other vital infrastructure along the Canada-U.S. border. The report concludes that Canada has no coherent strategy for dealing with a growing national security threat posed by small boats in high-traffic border regions. more>>
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Organized crime controls Italy’s food industry
(Jan. 22) Organized crime controls an estimated 12.5B euros of the 300B-euro food industry in Italy, according to the recent findings of a parliamentary investigation. The vast enterprise involves acquiring farmland and food production and transportation to supermarkets. Criminal groups often dictate producer and consumer prices, reducing prices paid to farmers while inflating prices paid by consumers. more>>
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Iran’s Gulf smugglers feel blowback from tensions
(Jan. 22) Because of the increased sanctions against Iran and rising tensions between the predominantly Shiite nation and the United States, in particular, even smuggling across the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz is feeling the pinch. "We used to make two or three trips across every day. Now, it's maybe one," said an Iranian middleman, who gave only his first name Agheel to protect his identity from authorities in his homeland. more>>
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Ex-Mountie gets 3 years in prison for child porn images
(Jan. 21) A former RCMP officer, Warren Allen, who had tens of thousands of child pornography images on his computer and who sexually assaulted a 14-year-old boy has been sentenced to three years and three months in jail. He served as an RCMP officer in Alberta from 1978 to 1984 and left the force to get his law degree from Queen's University. Allen was arrested in May 2010 during a police crackdown on child pornography that resulted in more than 200 charges being laid and 57 arrests in Canada and overseas. Allen's computer had on its hard-drive 27,000 images of children under the age of five being sexually abused. more>>
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U.S. opens new Canadian front in war on drugs
(Jan. 21) Washington launched a new offensive Friday in the U.S. war on drugs that targets Canadian marijuana and ecstasy. The U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy's recent paper says Canadian-produced high-potency marijuana and ecstasy are "the most significant Canadian drug threats to the United States." The U.S. National Northern Border Counternarcotics Strategy calls for more and smarter policing efforts on both sides of the border. more>>
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Norway security chief quits in Pakistan agents row
(Jan. 20) Norway's internal security chief, Janne Kristiansen, resigned on Wednesday after revealing that her country had intelligence agents in Pakistan. While she did recently tell a Parliamentary committee that Norweigan agents were in Pakistan, she did not say why. Kristiansen was already under fire for missing signs that a far-right extremist was preparing to attack. Behring Breivik, who was found to be criminally insane, killed 77 people in July. more>>
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All meetings with RCMP must be approved by Conservatives: documents
(Jan. 20) Documents obtained by the Toronto Star have revealed that the Harper government has ordered strict communications control over the RCMP and its new commissioner, Bob Paulson. The documents show that senior political staff of Public Safety Minister Vic Toews oversaw and approved the design of a new RCMP communications protocol that puts the national police force on a tighter leash. Anything that could "garner national media attention" must now be flagged by the RCMP and Public Safety Canada notified. more>>
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Tasers most likely to be used on ’downtrodden’: study
(Jan. 20) A recently published study that looked at more than 24 deaths involving Taser stun guns says that Canadian police have disproportionately targeted society's "downtrodden" - the poor, mentally ill and chronic drug users - in terms of using the weapon and created a "teething new urban terrorism" in the process. "It is beneath the integrity of the RCMP — a well-respected organization by international standards — and other police establishments in Canada to continue to use the Taser without conclusive independent scientific evidence succinctly demonstrating its effects or consequences on the human body," the journal study says. more>>
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Retired cop with suspected mob ties believed to have committed suicide
(Jan. 19) A retired Montreal police officer identified by La Presse newspaper as former detective-sergeant Ian Davidson is believed to have committed suicide after he was identified as being under investigation for trying to sell the names of secret informants to the Mafia. Davidson was a retired intelligence analyst. Police were called to a hotel north of Montreal Wednesday after a dead man was found in a room by an employee. Davidson, a 33-year veteran, was under investigation by the Montreal police, the Sûreté du Québec and the RCMP. He was among a limited number of people who had access to a confidential list of informant names. more>>
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Halifax police to use GPS to find missing seniors
(Jan. 19) Halifax Regional Police (HRP) will be the first law enforcement force in Canada to introduce a GPS tracking system for patients with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. HRP's year-long pilot project will include 10 participants age 55 or older who will wear a device on their wrist which will allow police to track them quickly should they wander off, explained Const. Matthew MacGillivray. "We are the first police service that I am familiar with that’s doing it," he said. more>>
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Kenwood announces VHF/800/900 MHz approvals
 Kenwood Electronics Canada Inc. has announced approval of its NX-210/410/411 portables, now eligible to bear the CSA mark and Intrinsically Safe approval for Class I, Division 1, Groups A, B, C and D; Class II, Division 1, Groups E, F and G; Class III, Division 1; Class I, Division 2, Groups A, B, C and D. As with the NX-200/300 series portables, the NX-210/410/411 portables are operational with 2W output and certified in temperatures ranging from -30°C to +60°C. more>>
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RCMP helicopter pilot killed in crash
(Jan. 18) A civilian RCMP member piloting one of the force's helicopters in B.C. was killed Tuesday afternoon when his aircraft crashed. His name has not been released pending notification of his family. No one else was on the Eurocopter AS350. "This is a very sad day for all Canadians," said Public Safety Minister Vic Toews. "The death of a member of our national police force is a sobering reminder of the sacrifices and bravery of the men and women who serve each day to keep our communities safe." The Transportation Safety Board is investigating. more>>
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Corruption trial told of savage beating by Toronto police
(Jan. 18) A Crown witness, Chris Quigley, has told the corruption trial of five former Toronto drug squad officers - John Schertzer, Ned Maodus, Steve Correia, Ray Pollard, and Joe Miched - that he was so badly beaten by police he thought he would die. "I thought they were going to kill me," Quigley testified Tuesday, the second day of the trial of the five men, who have been charged with committing a savage beating, extortion, theft of thousands in cash and a conspiracy to lie about and cover up a series of illegal arrests, searches and seizures. more>>
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Guatemala’s president calls on troops to ’neutralize’ organized crime
(Jan. 18) Guatemala's new president, Otto Perez Molina, has called on the military to help "neutralize" organized crime in the Central American nation. Perez Molina, who commenced his new role just yesterday, promised during his campaign that he would fight crime and violence with an "iron fist." Mexico's powerful Zetas drug cartel has increasingly used Guatemala as a base of operations and the country has one of the highest murder rates in the world. more>>
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Navy officer faces espionage charges
(Jan.17) A member of the Royal Canadian Navy has become the first person charged under the country's post-9/11 secrets law for allegedly passing protected government information to an unknown foreign body. Sub-Lt. Jeffrey Paul Delisle, 40, was charged Monday under the Security of Information Act, which came into effect in 2001. The navy intelligence officer is charged with communicating information that may "increase the capacity of a foreign entity or a terrorist group to harm Canadian interests." more>>
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Canadian Frigate Helps in Recovery of Scuttled Drug Boat
(Jan. 17) A Canadian frigate has helped recover from the Caribbean sea floor a sunken narco-submarine packed with cocaine. The midget sub - discovered more than 900 metres under water - was stuffed with 6,700 kilograms of cocaine with an estimated street value of $180 million US. HMCS St. John's was in the Caribbean as part of Operation CARIBBE, a U.S.-led, multinational effort to detect drug trafficking in the international waters of the Caribbean Basin and eastern Pacific Ocean. more>>
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Security Industry Association names Government Relations head
The Security Industry Association has appointed Marcus Dunn Director of Government Relations. Dunn comes to SIA from Susan Davis International, a public relations firm, where he served as a senior account executive and he worked for nearly a decade on Capitol Hill as a senior legislative advisor and as sole proprietor of legislative consulting firm Capitol Centric, LLC. “Marcus brings a wide variety of experiences to SIA, including work with associations, media, public and government relations,” said SIA CEO Don Erickson. more>>
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Raytheon showcases LA police car
Raytheon is highlighting its Mobile Digital Computer System in a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department cruiser at the giant Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. LA County plans to install the Raytheon laptop systems in 2,400 vehicles, including buses, boats and motorcycles. more>>
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50 years of Coast Guard service in Canada
(Jan 26) The Canadian Coast Guard has been a symbol of service and safety. These men and women have provided years of excellent service and embodied the ideals the Coast Guard has come to represent. On January 26, 2012 the CCG will proudly celebrate its 50th Anniversary. This brings us to consider the future. Greater demands, a changing climate in the Arctic, advances in technology and expectations for a greater presence in the North have set the tone for future requirements. The CCG owns and operates the federal government’s civilian fleet, and provides key maritime services to Canadians. As a Special Operating Agency of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), the Canadian Coast Guard helps DFO ensure safe and accessible waterways for Canadians. It also plays a key role in ensuring the sustainable use and development of Canada’s oceans and waterways. The organization has weathered many changes to its structure, fleet, and people over the years, but the passion and heart to serve the citizens of Canada have remained strong.
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Two survivors rescued from grounded cruise ship
(Jan. 15) A huge Italian cruise ship, Costa Concordia, carrying 3,200 passengers and 1,000 crew members ran aground on a sand bank near the island of Giglio on Friday night. Three passengers were killed, dozens were still missing several hours later, and the captain, , Francesco Schettino, has been arrested. A local prosecutor said he was investigated for abandoning ship and manslaughter. Schettino reportedly said his navigation chart didn't show a certain rock structure in the water that his ship apparently struck, but the Italian Coast Guard disputes his assertion. more>>
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Mafia called Italy’s largest bank
(Jan. 15) Organized crime in Italy is so massive that the Mafia currently takes in more than $180B annually, according to a recent report by Confesercenti, a business trade group. "The Mafia is Italy's No. 1 bank," said a statement from Confesercenti. With some $84B in cash reserves, the Mafia is financially more powerful than any of Italy's banks. more>>
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RCMP should have asked for Vancouver police help sooner: senior Mountie
(Jan. 14) Alberta RCMP Supt. Bob Williams told the Missing Women inquiry on Friday that Mounties in B.C. should have asked for help sooner from Vancouver police to investigate allegations that serial killer Robert Pickton was killing women on his Port Coquitlam farm. Williams said the RCMP detachment in Coquitlam, B.C. was very busy with other homicides and investigated Pickton when it could, but should have asked for more detectives from RCMP headquarters in the province. more>>
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US military involvement in border security too expensive?
(Jan. 14) Sylvia Longmire, a retired U.S. Air Force captain, former Special Agent with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, U.S. Southern Command desk officer, intelligence analyst at the California state fusion center and the California Emergency Management Agency's situational awareness unit, and author of "Cartel: The Coming Invasion of Mexico's Drug Wars", has written an article about a U.S. Government Accountability Office report, "Observations on the Costs and Benefits of an Increased Department of Defense Role in Helping to Secure the Southwest Land Border." more>>
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Securities sector vulnerable to organized crime: feds
(Jan. 14) The disparate system of market securities and regulatory bodies across the provinces might make the sector vulnerable to organized crime, according to a draft study report commissioned by the Public Safety Department. "There are many ways in which organized crime has exploited the securities sector, and many other possible methods to abuse this part of the economy," the document says. more>>
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RCMP apology for Pickton investigation deferred
(Jan. 13) Testifying at the Missing Women inquiry Thursday, RCMP Supt. Bob Williams, declined to apologize for the RCMP investigation's shortcomings of serial killer Robert Pickton. Williams said it would be up to RCMP management in B.C. to offer an apology or Commissioner Bob Paulson. Vancouver police have apologized to the victims' families, saying the department could and should have done more to catch Pickton sooner. The RCMP has never offered an apology. more>>
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Police skeptical of safe injection sites, study finds
(Jan. 13) While politicians in various municipalities consider setting up supervised drug-consumption sites, like the one in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, new research says that police opposition to the idea is "firm, clear and unanimous." Police opposition is based on a firm belief that the sites will worsen crime and bring harm to neighbouring businesses and residents. In September, the Supreme Court of Canada unanimously ruled that Vancouver's supervised injection site was exempt from federal drug laws, something other communities have noted. more>>
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TX coalition sees mixed results on spending on border security
(Jan. 13) The $90-odd billion that Washington has spent over the past decade to secure the Southwest border has resulted in no better than mixed results, according to a coalition of Texas border mayors, county executives and economic development leaders Thursday. The Texas Border Coalition said that Mexican drug cartels continue to enjoy success and are smuggling more drugs than ever into the U.S. through the nation's legal border crossings. more>>
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Cdn. Forces member in Cold Lake facing child porn charges
(Jan. 12) A member of Canada's military in Cold Lake whom the Dept. of National Defence would not name is facing several sexual assault and child pornography charges after a police investigation originating in Saskatchewan. The RCMP, with the help of Child and Family Services, visited the accused person's home "to check on the welfare of his family and arrested him without incident," according to police Wednesday. The Mounties say the man and his victim are from the same family and will not identify him to protect the family. more>>
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Fourth Iran nuclear scientist killed in car bomb blast
(Jan. 12) A fourth Iranian nuclear scientist, Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, was assassinated Wednesday, this time by a magnetic car bomb. Israel is widely suspected of having orchestrated the killing. A pedestrian was also killed and an occupant in Roshan's car was seriously injured. more>>
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Better-armed, better-trained Thai insurgents
(Jan. 12) Anthony Davis, a Bangkok-based security analyst for IHS Jane's, explains the shifting security situation in southern Thailand involving the RKK (from the Malay Runda Kumpulan Kecil) and Barisan Revolusi Nasional, the driving force behind the Muslim insurgency. more>>
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Former U.S. Marine found guilty of gun smuggling
(Jan. 11) A former U.S. Marine, Steven Greenoe, who once worked as a bodyguard for the pop singer Madonna has been jailed for smuggling guns into the U.K. on passenger flights. Greenoe bought guns from gun shops, took them apart and, posing as an arms salesman, transported them into Britain in his luggage. There, he sold them to a contact, who re-sold them to British criminals. more>>
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Mexico steps up hunt for drug lord Joaquin Guzman
(Jan. 11) Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, the head of the powerful Sinaloa drug cartel in Mexico is arguably the world's most wanted man. He has successfully eluded authorities since he escaped from prison in 2001. The cartel he controls is responsible for much of the cocaine, marijuana and methamphetamines smuggled into the United States, in particular, and is believed to have links in as many as 50 countries. The Washington Post has reported that Mexico had set up three elite teams - from the navy, army and federal police - dedicated to capturing Guzman, dead or alive. more>>
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Nigeria violence: Deadly gun attack on bar in Yobe
(Jan. 11) Gunmen in northern Nigeria recently opened fire in a bar, killing eight people, including police officers. The attack is being blamed on the Islamic militant group, Boko Haram. As a probable act of revenge for extremist Muslim violence against Christians in the north, a mosque and Islamic school in Benin city in the mainly Christian south were recently set ablaze. Nigeria, which has a population of 180 million, is half Muslim, half Christian. more>>
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Man sentenced in 20-ton cocaine smuggling scheme
(Jan. 10) A Colombian man, Hector Fabio Zapata Alavares, was convicted Monday in Seattle of conspiring to smuggle 20 tons of cocaine - worth an estimated $600M - into the United States. An undercover Drug Enforcement Administration agent posing as a Seattle shipping executive was instrumental in the case.
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Organized crime active in P.E.I.
(Jan. 10) The head of RCMP "L" Division, Chief Superintendent Tracy Hardy, told an audience in Prince Edward Island Monday that organized crime is active in Canada's smallest province. Illicit activities range from drug trafficking and the sale of contraband tobacco to break and enter rings and major fraud. Hardy said the impact of organized crime is felt by many islanders. more>>
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Cubic pilots Canadian transit security
(Jan. 9) Under a government-funded pilot program to be launched this year in Edmonton, Cubic Security Systems is providing advanced fare media-based real-time threat detection technology to help law enforcement teams to identify and respond to threats from chemical, radiological and explosive weapons in public transit settings. more>>
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Police learn how to deal with the mentally ill in crisis
(Jan. 9) Because there is a shortage of mental-health resources in the country, police have increasingly become the first point of contact for mentally ill people in crisis. In Vancouver, one-third of all calls involve people who are mentally disturbed, and in the small Ontario city of Belleville (pop.: 50K), each front-line officer attends about 40 such calls a year. Some forces are devoting extra time and resources to training their officers and experimenting with better ways to approach mentally ill people in crisis. more>>
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