After outlining the violent 24 hours in downtown Edmonton, the city’s police chief promised on Thursday to bring more officers into the core faster than previously planned.
“I can not wait. This will start next week, “Chief Dale McPhee told police commissioners at City Hall.
“Two people lost their lives and there are a bunch of other serious things about it.”
McPhee listed suspicious deaths in Chinatown, a “brazen shooting in front of a pub” and a stabbing at an LRT station that occurred Wednesday night or early Thursday morning as reasons for his response.
There was also a death in a homeless camp, which was later considered non-criminal, and a clash of injuries, for which McPhee said everything had to be handed over to staff at the center.
“We will move a lot of resources. We will have to figure out how to pay for it. “
McPhee has been repeatedly asked how many staff will be relocated, but said details are still being clarified.
“You will see an increased visual presence in our center, including the core, Chinatown and 118 Avenue. We will seek enhanced cooperation with transit and other peacekeepers if possible, but we will continue on our own if necessary, “he said.
McPhee apologized to other parts of Edmonton and said some neighborhoods “will not receive (services) for a while.”
“ISSUE OF THEIR OWN INACTION”: JANZ
On Wednesday, Edmonton City Council discussed funding for police activities, which the commission chairman said would amount to $ 22 million.
McPhee suggested he needed more money and expressed disappointment at being able to be on the line for a frozen budget.
“Although we can deal with the immediate crisis in our center, it is not sustainable. We can maintain it for a few months, but it will also risk too many negative impacts in other parts of the city, “he said.
“We need to remove politics and have some constructive discussions on how to move forward. We all have a role to play. Honestly, the discussions that are taking place at the political level at the moment are not helpful.”
McFee’s comments were immediately criticized by the Ward Papastew Coun. Michael Yants.
“EPS management seems to be trying to solve a problem with its own inaction,” he tweeted in response.
“Crime is declining, but 19.1% of calls come from the center and they have allocated only a small part of the resources. As EPS did for LRT. The mayor wrote a letter to the police asking them to allocate resources to the center, and I will share the answer when I receive it. “
Mayor Amarjit Sohi expressed his condolences to the victims on Thursday in a statement to CTV News Edmonton.
“I am devastated to hear of the violent attacks that took place in the Chinatown of Edmonton last night, leaving two valuable members of the community dead,” he wrote.
“I have heard Chinatown’s calls for increased security and I will work with the community and EPS to find immediate solutions, following my proposal, which was adopted on Monday, to allocate funding and resources to Chinatown and the city center.
Sohi encouraged anyone affected by the attacks to turn to the Canadian Mental Health Services in Canada for support.
McPhee said he could turn to the province for more money, but did not specify a dollar figure or timeline.
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