FILE PHOTO – Members of the Hells Angels arrive for a national gathering in Saint-Charles-sur-Richelieu, Que on Friday, August 10, 2018.
Credit: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes
May 20, 2021 – 4:30 p.m
Organized gang members and other criminals involved in drugs, violence or firearms can be escorted out of licensed premises in Kelowna this summer.
This is the eighth year that the Kelowna RCMP has volunteered to work with local businesses through its Inadmissible Patron Policy program.
Licensed premises and hotels that voluntarily participate in the program give the RCMP the power to remove ineligible guests under the BC Trespass Act.
“Our officers are working closely with our partner companies to ensure that any unauthorized guests are properly notified and that the company complies with Trespass Act regulations,” said Kelowna RCMP Insp. Beth McAndie said in a media release. “Our goal with this program is for all customers to feel safe in our local businesses, knowing they are not at risk from ongoing criminal conflicts.”
A patron may be considered inadmissible if his lifestyle, associations or activities endanger public safety.
Criteria include involvement in organized crime, membership in a gang, membership in a known group of such groups, involvement in drug trafficking after conviction for a felony or through another police database, a history of violent criminal activity and the Presence of history of gun crimes.
“The Kelowna RCMP started this program in 2013-2014 and we are very excited to be joining the IPP program for another summer,” Kelowna’s top cop Supt, Kara Triance said in the release. “This program has been extremely successful in Kelowna and has become an integral part of our efforts to keep the community safe from organized criminal elements.”
RCMP does not say when the program will start or how many companies are participating.
Companies interested in the program can contact the Kelowna Special Enforcement Team by email at E_Kelowna_ipp@rcmp-grc.gc.ca.
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