Criminals becoming more transient, presenting challenges to police
Niagara regional police are constantly adjusting their techniques to bring down drug dealers and the criminal underworld.
Speaking at a recent police services board meeting, Staff Sergeant Matt Hodges pointed out they're finding when gang members come to Niagara, they don't stay long, whereas in the past they set up shop on a more long-term basis.
"We're seeing a lot of back and forth between Niagara and Toronto, where a gang member or a group will come into Niagara, set up at a local drug house, they'll work for a few days, then they'll go back to Toronto," he says.
The sergeant added police forces are constantly communicating as gangs become more transient from Toronto, Montreal, the east coast or over the border. Many gangs come to Niagara because of the night life.
Meanwhile, police are always challenging their creativity with technology.
Hodges revealed very organized groups move cocaine across the border and eventually to those who distribute it in the community. "During Project Ink and Roadmaster, we saw organized crime members using encrypted devices, with servers off-shore that we couldn't intercept, so a traditional wire tap, for the most part, wouldn't work."
The Police Services Board meeting also heard biker gangs such as Hell's Angels and Outlaws now have "puppet clubs", which are smaller groups, that do the majority of crime, allowing the "parent gangs" to distance themselves from crime.
Police Chief Bryan MacCulloch also pointed out his officers are coming across more firearms in their investigations of crime, which he says speaks to the potential violence police officers face while on the job.
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