Drumheller RCMP increases traffic enforcement as detachment looks to put more officers on the road

By Melissa Crispin-Piche Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Traffic enforcement, drug investigations and efforts to keep officers out on the road were among the priorities highlighted by Drumheller RCMP during an update to Wheatland County council Sept. 8.

Detachment Commander Christian Lafleur told council officers issued 395 traffic tickets during the reporting period along with 26 warnings.  Of those tickets, 213 were for speeding.

The detachment has also been using dedicated overtime traffic shifts, with officers brought in specifically to conduct enforcement. Lafleur said three overtime shifts resulted in approximately $10,000 in fines. 

RCMP also conducted three Check Stop operations with partner agencies including county peace officers and sheriffs along with two additional RCMP-only operations. The detachment recorded 10 impaired driving enforcement results during the quarter.

Drug enforcement was another focus.

Lafleur reported 43 search warrant and general enforcement activities relating to drugs and said several investigations remain active.

“We were successful in disrupting some of the drug operation,” he said. 

RCMP also made 23 drug trafficking and possession arrests and completed 20 investigations connected to attempts to smuggle drugs into the Drumheller Institution.

Property crime enforcement has included nightly compliance checks on people subject to conditions such as curfews. Those checks resulted in 27 breach charges.

Targeted efforts to arrest people with outstanding warrants also resulted in 18 arrests. Rather than conducting broad sweeps Lafleur said officers are increasingly targeting individuals when police know where they are likely to be.

Fraud, Internet child exploitation and sextortion are also continuing concerns. 

“Sextortion has been a big one. It seems to be on the rise,” Lafleur said.

The detachment has been providing public presentations on fraud and sextortion and Lafleur said cryptocurrency-related scams continue to appear.

Staffing was also discussed.

Lafleur said there are currently no vacancies among rural RCMP members assigned to the detachment although there is one municipal vacancy.

He is also proposing the addition of a sergeant position. The position could allow members to progress through the ranks without having to leave the area to gain experience elsewhere.

“I’d like to have continuity because most of the guys I have like it around here so much they don’t want to leave,” Lafleur said.

He said adding a sergeant would also allow the detachment’s two corporals to spend more time supervising officers in the field and taking files themselves.

That fits with a broader reorganization Lafleur said is intended to reduce the administrative work being handled by uniformed officers.