LOCAL RCMP AT WORK IN THE COMMUNITY

Throughout this week the Alaska highway News will be taking a closer
look at how each of the units within the RCMP contribute to the safety
and well-being of the residents of Fort St. John and area.

DRUG SECTION

In a young community, plush with cash, drug enforcement necessarily
becomes a big part of police work. Constable Gary Grey is one of the
Fort St. John officers on the local drug beat and spends most of his
time targeting the local cocaine trade.

In 2010, Grey and his colleagues ramped up their efforts to reduce the
local cocaine trade, increasing arrests related to the drug by 53 per
cent. The high levels of disposable income among the region's
relatively youthful population makes Fort St. John a lucrative market
for cocaine traffickers.

At the same time, Grey explained that the dominant cocaine trade has
actually prevented large amounts of meth from being introduced into
the community.

"Historically people who try and bring meth into Fort St. John get
pushed out by the cocaine dealers, so looking from a police
standpoint, we're actually pretty lucky that meth hasn't been brought
in because it causes far more problems," explained Grey.

Even without the presence of meth, Grey's drug unit is engaged in a
constant battle to wipe the scourge of drugs from Fort St. John's
streets. Over the last several months, Grey said his unit has
cooperated with police in Chetwynd and Dawson Creek to make some big
arrests and drug seizures.

With hundreds of pounds of marijuana and significant amounts of other
narcotics seized every year by police, residents might wonder where
all the loot goes. Grey explained that police have a partnership with
a local resource company, which allows them to burn seized drugs in a
big furnace with stack scrubbers so the narcotics don't enter the
atmosphere and create more problems.

Working in the drug unit isn't just about breaking in doors and making
arrests. Grey explained that constables working in his unit have to be
more careful than most to make sure everything is done according to
protocol.

"It has to be rock solid," said Grey, "To prosecute a drug file is a
lot more difficult than in other units, because we're always
infringing on someone's rights by going into their cars and homes, so
we have to make sure the investigation is good up to the point of arrest."

A typical drug investigation involves a lot of surveillance explained
Grey, whether it's talking with informants or users on the streets.
For Grey, the most exciting part of the job begins after the
surveillance is complete.

"The most fun comes just before the arrest. Your adrenalin is high and
you never know what's going to happen," said Grey, "Vehicles run and
people run and you never know what's around that corner."

Other than the excitement of the chase, Grey said the most satisfying
part of his job is when he can make a difference in someone's life by
getting them out of the drug world.

BIKE PATROL

Following last year's successful pilot project, Fort St. John RCMP
will be staffing a police bike unit once again this summer.

Constable Derek Rondeau is one officer who won't be needing much extra
cardio time this summer, as he will likely get enough pedal-patrolling
Fort St. John's streets, alleys and walking paths.

The bike patrol is different from other police work, Rondeau
explained, because it allows officers to integrate themselves better
into their surroundings and removes the separation a squad car creates
between cops and residents.

One of the effects of policing by bike, said Rondeau, is that enables
police to be more proactive.

"You're not always responding to calls, so instead you can take the
time to go to the skate park and talk with the kids there or cruise
over to Kin Park and hang out with the kids hitting jumps," said Rondeau.

In addition, Rondeau said that the bike patrol can often change the
way residents perceive the police force.

"It creates public awareness that we're not just people who go out to
arrest people. Residents can approach us with questions or concerns,"
Rondeau said.

The difference in speed and increased stealth gives officers on the
bike patrol certain advantages their car-bound colleagues don't have.

"Because we're traveling more slowly we can see things we wouldn't in
the car. We also get to patrol areas like parks and trails which you
can't get to in a car and people really appreciate that," Rondeau
pointed out.

One of the only pitfalls Rondeau could identify on the bike beat is
lengthy exposure to inclement weather, but other than that he said he
is really looking forward to June 6th when the patrol is scheduled to
begin.