September 1, 2015
Criminals To Pay For Greater Public Safety: Minister Mackintosh
– – –Manitoba's Forfeiture Fund Provides New Tools, Training for Regional Law Enforcement
Criminals will pay for greater public safety through Manitoba’s Criminal Property Forfeiture Fund, which will provide more than $276,000 in new equipment, training and other resources for police agencies serving Brandon, rural Manitoba and Indigenous communities, Attorney General Gord Mackintosh announced today.
“Community safety is important to all Manitobans,” said Minister Mackintosh. “This fund helps ensure regional police services can access the tools needed to better protect citizens and reduce crime throughout the province. The fund diverts money away from unlawful activity and back into law enforcement, which we believe will benefit the safety and security of neighbourhoods for many years to come.”
Money and other assets linked to unlawful activity can be forfeited to the province and placed into the fund. Every year this money is reinvested in law enforcement agencies and other initiatives through a grant program, the minister noted.
The Brandon Police Service (BPS) will receive nearly $144,000 for:
- 13 computer systems to support a shift to e-ticketing technology;
- a community mobilization vehicle, which will help an officer working in the community to identify at-risk individuals and offer supports and services to them and their families;
- less-lethal, beanbag handgun launchers for the tactical response unit;
- thermal night-vision goggles for the police service dog unit; and
- digital cameras and other computer equipment to help collect and analyze evidence.
“Community safety is our top priority,” said Chief Ian Grant, BPS. “Taking funds from those engaged in unlawful activity and placing it in the hands of the police makes perfect sense. The tools we will be able to acquire will greatly assist us in being more efficient in our work, but also in our efforts to support community safety.”
Minister Mackintosh highlighted several other grants provided to police agencies serving Manitoba’s communities including:
- nearly $18,000 for the Cornwallis Police Services to purchase new computer and e-ticketing systems,
- nearly $94,000 for the Dakota Ojibway Police Service to purchase rifles and provide training to all members on their use,
- nearly $12,000 to Rivers Police Service to purchase new computer equipment, and
- more than $8,200 for the Victoria Beach Police to purchase and install new radar units.
Funding for these projects is part of more than $1.6 million in grants distributed through the Criminal Property Forfeiture Fund. Since 2010, nearly 1,200 files have been resolved and more than $12 million in assets connected to unlawful activity has been successfully forfeited to the province, the minister noted. The assets include homes, cash, vehicles and businesses.
For more information about the Criminal Property Forfeiture Fund, visit www.gov.mb.ca/justice/safe/cpf/index.html.
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