LOCAL POLICE LAUNCH NEW DRUG SQUAD TO TACKLE CHANGING NATURE OF CRIME

Fighting drug crime is expected to be more efficient with the creation
of a new policing division in Waterloo Region, according to police
Chief Matt Torigian.

Approved recently by the police services board, the Waterloo Regional
Police drug branch, the intelligence branch, and the Special Response
Unit will be brought together into one building.

"It's keeping pace with the dynamic changes we see in our community,"
said Torigian. "It is a significant change."

It is expected the new division will be based at police headquarters -
where a current renovation expansion is ongoing - on Maple Grove Road,
said the chief, which means a new facility will not have to be built
for the new division.

Based on feedback from the public through its annual citizen survey,
fighting drugs should be a top policing priority.

That was considered when thinking of creating a new division, said
Torigian.

"We're creating this culture of accountability and meeting those
expectations," he said.

The division will require one superintendent and one inspector, but it
has not yet been decided who will fill those positions.

Torigian said the positions will be taken on by existing senior
command service members.

The new division has not yet been named.

But because the branches and unit involved are referred to as
strategic and tactical services, the chief said he anticipates the
name will reflect that.

Growth in the number of officers employed by the police service also
plays a part in the decision to create a new division, noted the chief.

With more than 150 officers hired over the last 10 years, some
shuffling is being done to group these "inter-related" branches.