Following a recent spate of shootings in the Lower Mainland, Inspector Dean Robinson, head of the Vancouver Police Department's Gang Squad, and Sergeant Steve Hyde of the VPD Gang Crime Unit (GCU), gave an overview of how the VPD is dealing with gang-related crime in the city to the media on Wednesday.
The highlights:
There is no indication that the recent gang activity signals an impending gang war or the possibility of a retaliatory incident. Some high profile, violent events that involve firearms do have gang ties. Others, however, do not.
Gang violence is not specific to Vancouver, but affects outlying regions also. A lot of the crime in Vancouver is related to its being a port city with a strong drug trade. Much of the violence relates to internal gang strife rather than gang-versus-gang conflict.
There is a propensity for "open-air" violence in 2007 that is more common than in past years. The violent incidents that are occurring in heavily populated areas like nightclubs, intersections, and restaurants are directly attributed to the growing availability of firearms on Vancouver streets. An increasing number of dangerous and prohibited firearms, ranging from pistols and revolvers up to exotic military assault rifles, are being carried by persons or in vehicles. Many of these firearms are smuggled into Vancouver from the United States, where they have been acquired in trade for B.C. marijuana. Others have been criminally obtained locally, through B and Es (break and enter) of homes and businesses. The enormous seizure of firearms in April, 2007, from a residence at 1120 Quebec Street exemplified the availability of firearms to gangs.
Historically, the VPD has aggressively pursued organized crime groups like the Hells Angels, and Asian organized crime groups. In the last five years, The United Nations (UN) Gang and Independent Soldiers, a group originating in B.C.'s Interior, have identified themselves. Over and above those organizations, there are gangs who don't label themselves who are involved in profit-driven crime and violent conflicts.
The GCU, which consists of 17 members and an Inspector, focuses solely on gang crime-related issues. Some techniques they use to catch and prosecute gang members include:
* Intelligence gathering
* High profile street checks and the targeting of known criminals and gang members in the entertainment district and areas where shootings have occurred
* Curfew checks
* Firearms interdiction teams, augmented by members of the Gang Crime Unit, Emergency Response Team, and patrol officers
* The Gang Enforcement Network
A VPD Youth Squad comprised of former Gang Crime Unit members is seeking to address the issue of gang recruitment with ongoing information sessions.
The Gang Crime Unit members are confident in their ability to achieve convictions. The GCU is currently working with every available resource and in concert with other police and investigative agencies, the courts, and the Crown to reinforce to the public that it is doing everything it can to tackle problems related to gang crime.
The VPD Gang Squad Investigators are reiterating their appeal to anyone with information about the gang-related shooting at Quattro Restaurant on Saturday, September 8 to come forward. The number to call is 604-717-2541 or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.
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