$40,000 for Con Air Means More Criminals Heading Home
VANCOUVER – More fugitives wanted on outstanding warrants in other provinces will get a one-way ticket home to face justice, thanks to $40,000 in new provincial funding to the Vancouver Police Department’s Con Air program, Solicitor General Kash Heed announced today.
“Vancouver police have sent 43 offenders back to their own jurisdictions since the program began in 2008, and this funding will mean more will be caught, jailed and returned to face the music with their local police,” said Heed.
“We will aggressively seek them out,” said Vancouver Police Department Supt. Warren Lemcke. “With this support from the Provincial Government we will arrest them and send them back to be dealt with by the courts.”
Lemcke noted that the Vancouver Police Department will use the funding to help keep Con Air flying criminals to justice and to give victims of crime their closure. This program has resulted in the arrest of chronic offenders, gang members, and others who have committed very serious crimes and who fled the jurisdiction where the offence occurred to avoid prosecution, snubbing their noses at the law. Lemcke added that many of these individuals have come to the Vancouver area where they have continued their criminal activities.
Heed said he is pleased that the federal government has introduced legislation that creates a new specific offence for failure to remain within the jurisdiction of the court, which will be a significant part of the solution to warrant avoidance.
“The Province is also making headway on other fronts,” said Heed. “For example, we are working on an agreement with Alberta to address outstanding warrants between the two provinces, and our progress is encouraging.”
The new funding is being provided in addition to the $40,000 that ConAir received in 2008. The Vancouver Police Department applied for both grants through the Province’s Civil Forfeiture program, which receives funds forfeited under the Civil Forfeiture Act.
In the past two years, government has provided $930,000 from civil forfeiture proceeds to a number of community projects across the province aimed at curbing crime and helping victims.
