With media from around the world in town for the Olympics, Vancouver police said yesterday efforts to combat gang violence are producing results.
“We have had a 35 per cent reduction of shots fired in the city of Vancouver in the last two years,” said Dawn Richards, a detective in the VPD gang crime unit.
She said police are focusing on techniques to stop gang crimes before they occur.
“We will be partnering with other police jurisdictions and we will investigate and lay charges no matter where they are,” Richards said.
“Gangsters will not be able to hide simply because of municipal boundaries.”
She also presented a list of myths about gangsters, including that they are loyal, wealthy and that they only shoot other gangsters.
Fourteen innocent bystanders have been injured by violent crime in Vancouver, and five killed since 2007, Richards said.
