Mounties launch dedicated sex crimes unit in Langford, B.C.
The West Shore RCMP has launched a new, three-member unit dedicated to investigating sex crimes after the department handled more than 100 such cases last year.
The special victims unit is comprised of two constables and one corporal and is overseen by the staff-sergeant of the serious crimes unit.
The Langford, B.C.-based detachment investigated 106 reported sexual offences in 2021, the department said in a release Thursday.
Those 106 reported crimes did not include 22 child pornography investigations that were handled by the serious crimes unit.
"That number jumped to 41 files of this nature as of December 2022, and the West Shore RCMP expects this number to continue increasing," the detachment said.
Child pornography cases and other sex crime investigations are often extremely resource intensive, according to the department, which cited a case in which a West Shore man was sentenced last month to 18 months in jail following a two-and-a-half-year probe into child porn possession.
"We determined there was a need for a specialized unit to handle some of these investigations as they are very complex in nature," Staff-Sgt. John Ferguson of the West Shore RCMP serious crimes unit said.
"Often, sexual offence investigations require a significant amount of time, making it difficult for frontline officers to investigate while also responding to other calls for service."
The detachment says the creation of the unit will not change how offences like sexual assault and voyeurism are reported to police.
"A report of this nature will come into the West Shore RCMP and from there the SVU unit will determine if their unit’s expertise is required," the department said.
"SVU officers are highly skilled and specifically trained in critical investigative techniques like interviewing children, writing search warrants and monitoring victims who are at risk of being re-victimized."
Last month, the Saanich Police Department established its own sex crimes unit, dubbed the special investigations section.
The nine-member unit consists of two sergeants and seven constables, including one new hire who was added with the approval of the department's 2022 budget.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Pilot reported fire onboard plane carrying fuel, attempted to return to Fairbanks just before crash
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'
Ukraine uses long-range missiles secretly provided by U.S. to hit Russian-held areas, officials say
Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States, bombing a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Russian forces in another occupied area overnight, American officials said Wednesday.