You may or may not be aware, but there is a cat and mouse scenario that happens daily in Edmonton.
And it’s much more sophisticated than Cops and Robbers.
Auto theft is a now nation-wide issue with the federal government calling for stiffer measures to prevent criminals from selling stolen vehicles in Canada or abroad. That’s where the TRAP team comes in to play.
“In the city of Edmonton auto theft remains high, we are averaging around 3000 vehicles thefts per year,” said Acting Staff Sergeant Ian Strom.
TRAP stands for Targeted Response to Auto Theft Prevention. The unit does its best work unseen, in the background. Anonymity is one of its top weapons. The officers are in plain clothes and drive unmarked vehicles, so they won’t alarm suspects and to avoid criminal flights.
“I would say we're seeing probably two to four offenders fleeing from police members daily here in the city. These offenders drive in a very aggressive manner, which is obviously very dangerous to the public,” said Strom.
TRAP partners with aerial and four legged allies when it comes to criminal flights. They rely on Air 1 and the Canine Unit to help them apprehend criminals.
“I believe last year TRAP recovered just under 600 vehicles and we had just under 500 arrests. We're averaging right around that $18 million a year in asset recovery between our TRAP teams,” said Strom.
Despite the successes, TRAP members know the work won’t likely slow down anytime soon. Criminals are emboldened by the relatively light sentences handed down by the courts for auto theft crimes.
However, the work TRAP is doing is having an impact on the crime circles it targets.
“When we arrest bad guys, they know who we are. They're like, ‘you guys are with TRAP. We don't like TRAP. We try to stay out of Edmonton because of TRAP.” said Acting Sgt. Donald Lawrence.
“I'm glad they know we're out there. Maybe make them think twice before they steal a vehicle or enter into a criminal flight event,” added Strom.