Arrived….. a new Police Chief to serve as leader for all South Okanagan-Similkameen RCMP detachments – from Princeton/Keremeos to Summerland south to Osoyoos.

Welcome Brian Hunter – a 26 year veteran of the force – the latest in a string of Superintendents and Inspectors who have administered 6 detachments, a traffic division and all the general investigative and drug teams.

Superintendent Hunter said Penticton’s crime problem is fueled by addiction and complex mental health issues.

“Penticton certainly has a lot of property crime, one of the highest per capita in the province, so my job is twofold: To actively investigate those crimes, identify our chronic offenders, and hold them to account through the court system,” he said.

“No one is saying just because it’s an addiction, just because there’s mental health issues, we’re not going to deal with it.

“We need to support that frontline, which also comes with a crime reduction strategy, and identifying those chronic offenders and holding them to account,” Hunter said.

Hunter added he will support regional commanders in their staffing requests, if evidence warrants it. Oliver RCMP detachment has requested two additional police officers to handle an increase in files, in part, due to the opening of the Okanagan Correctional Centre (OCC).

 

With files from Global Okanagan