ST. PAUL – The St. Paul RCMP carried out its first visible foot patrol in the downtown core on Sept. 24.
Staff Sgt. Dennis Silliker, St. Paul detachment commander, said the initiative aims to help address public concerns about safety and create a more visible police presence to deter crime.
Police visibility is crucial, according to Silliker.
“Our members are active. They’re busy folks and I know they take a lot on their plates,” he said. “But we need to be maximizing that visibility capacity.”
The move followed consultations with the Town of St. Paul’s council, who identified areas for improved policing services.
“Some of those improvements are going to be consistent foot patrols through the downtown core,” said Silliker.
He noted that patrol schedules and routes would not be disclosed to maintain an element of surprise and ensure a more effective response to potential crime.
“Internally, we do have some strategies moving forward,” he explained.
The foot patrols will focus on identified hotspots, including main street and areas with transient traffic, to ensure that police resources are deployed where they are most needed.
“We have a lot of transient traffic through main street and some of the corridors veer off main [street]. So, we’re going to be following the action as it were, as we always do. So, if we identify those hot spots in town, you can be assured that our police officers are going to be there,” he said.
Silliker explained that acts of mischief, and other petty crime, move around, which requires flexibility.
The detachment commander also hopes the initiative will improve community and public engagement with the police.
“We’re always out there and sometimes folks don’t see it, and that’s why I think it’s critical that we action some priorities like what the Town council identified.”
The community can expect more initiatives in the future to enhance policing, according to Silliker.
“We're just excited about a bit of a new chapter here at St. Paul RCMP.”
Moving forward, the detachment will also be welcoming a new operations NCO – Sgt. Andrew Druhan – who will begin work in his new role on Oct. 1.
“I know Sgt. Druhan has some good initiatives, as well,” said Silliker.
“So, there's some new energy, and we really want to make sure that we’re identifying the community priorities and we're actioning them just as what we've done now.”