Alberta creating new provincial gang suppression unit, firearms unit

Alberta is creating two new police units in an effort to combat organized crime and gun violence throughout the province.

Alberta is creating two new police units in an effort to combat organized crime and gun violence throughout the province.

The UCP announced the creation of the gang suppression unit and firearms investigative unit on Wednesday, both of which will operate under the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams (ALERT).

The creation of the units will be funded by $4.4 million from the province's 2023 budget.

"This approach brings together the province’s most sophisticated law enforcement resources to combat organized and serious crime," said Mike Ellis, minister of public safety and emergency services, said in a news release.

"Calgarians deserve to feel safe in their own community, and we also know that these criminals will stretch this kind of violence beyond those municipal borders."

Ellis says the gang unit will work to identify and suppress organized crime and firearm violence, support work being done by the firearms investigative unit, and identify "individuals at risk of being victims or perpetrators of gun violence."

Both units will work with the Calgary Police Service, RCMP, Criminal Intelligence Service Alberta and the firearms lab.