Winnipeg police getting more money to deal with firearm trafficking
The Winnipeg Police Service is receiving new money from the provincial government to put a dent into firearm trafficking.
Justice Minister Kelvin Goertzen announced more than $17,000 will be given to the Winnipeg Police Service to help deal with gun crimes in the city. The money will be used to purchase equipment for officers and give them training to allow them to better track and restore serial numbers of seized firearms.
During his announcement Goertzen said police services across Canada, including in Winnipeg, are seeing increased gun crimes, including trafficking.
“It is alarming, it is dangerous, it’s a trend that our frontline police officers are seeing, and they themselves are put at risk as part of this trend.” Goertzen said. “It’s a concern to bystanders; it’s a concern to civilians who could be at risk of stray gunfire.”
Firearms investigations in Winnipeg are completed by the Firearms Investigative Analysis Section (FIAS) of the Winnipeg Police Service. The unit examines seized guns and attempts to identify their sources by restoring destroyed serial numbers. Goertzen said four WPS officers recently received training from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to examine and restore destroyed serial numbers.
“Any firearm with its serial number obliterated is a crime gun, and is a trademark of a smuggled or trafficked firearm for a criminal purpose,” said Insp. Elton Hall with the WPS.
According to the province, FIAS seized 859 guns in 2021, up from 721 in 2020. Of the firearms seized in 2021, 89 firearms had their serial numbers restored.
So far this year, 455 crime guns have been seized in Winnipeg, with 79 serial numbers restored, Hall said.
He added restoring the serial number allows officers to track down where the firearms came from, to find out if it was stolen, or if it was used in other crimes.
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.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
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.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
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.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.