THUNDER BAY – NEWS – Ontario has put forward an enhanced Guns and Gangs Strategy. The OPP in a media release earlier today (July 12, 2022) outlined the program.
Thunder Bay Police Service was not included in this effort.
Thunder Bay Acting Chief of Police Dan Taddeo states, “We have long been aware that individuals from across Ontario come to Thunder Bay to participate in the illicit drug trafficking trade. We are also aware the most vulnerable people in this community are disproportionately affected by the impacts of drug trafficking. For that reason, we applaud any initiative aiming to disrupt drug-trafficking and gang activity. It is not unreasonable to assume an arrest in Toronto, Timmins or Sudbury could prevent an out-of-district drug trafficker from setting up roots in Thunder Bay”.
“Meanwhile, we maintain a cooperative and productive relationship with our law enforcement partners inside and outside of Northwestern Ontario. Investigations into organized crime groups cannot exist in a vacuum, therefore the sharing of intelligence between agencies is critical”.
“The TBPS has a great deal of experience heading up multi-jurisdictional investigations and is currently working on a new Northern Ontario municipal joint force operation. We also maintain numerous local partnerships, with agencies inside and outside of law enforcement, that actively combat issues of organized crime and human trafficking”.
“As we look ahead, it is vital that provincial funding continues to support the effort to combat gang violence and drug trafficking. We will continue to seek funding and partnership opportunities that will help improve public safety and community wellbeing in Thunder Bay and Northwestern Ontario. However, the depth of social and law enforcement issues in Thunder Bay present unique challenges. When partnership opportunities present themselves, we must carefully evaluate how our resources may fit in and what local impacts that could have”.
“This is the critical balance needed to ensure we are not overextending our resources by committing officers outside of the City of Thunder Bay.
“The TBPS has been at the forefront of enforcement efforts designed to disrupt and impact the volume of illicit drugs and resulting violence with has been coming into our communities.
“We will continue to seek an equitable share of this funding to help not only Thunder Bay, but all of Northwestern Ontario in the mission to improve public safety and community well-being”.
Thunder Bay Police have been active in the ongoing fight against southern Ontario drug gangs along with the new level of violence brought to our city.