WELLINGTON COUNTY CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION UNIT The Wellington County Crime Unit has had several changes during 2008. Detective Sergeant MaryLouise Kearns joined the unit in the summer of 2008 and oversees a group of Detective Constables. The detectives report to several locations within Wellington County including Rockwood, Fergus and Mount Forest.
Detective Sgt. MaryLouise Kearns
During 2008, the Wellington County Crime Unit responded to numerous investigations that included, but were not limited, to death investigations, sexual assaults, robberies, frauds, voyeurism and domestic violence investigations.
Such occurrences take investigative expertise and Wellington County has a talented group of individuals who ensure that all investigations are completed in a thorough manner. Detectives are trained in areas such as General Investigative Techniques, Sexual Assault Investigations, Investigating Offences Against Children, Interviewing Techniques and Major Case Management. These are some of the core competency courses and provide only a fraction of the training given to all detectives in the Crime Unit. Detectives in the Crime Unit work cooperatively with front-line officers, the Forensic Identification Unit, Emergency Response Team, Intelligence Unit, Drug Enforcement Section, Child Sexual Exploitation Section, Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau, Crime Prevention Section and other specialized resources that are stationed throughout the Province. The Wellington County Crime Unit currently has several detectives specializing in specific areas which include; major crime, property crime, domestic violence and hate/bias investigators.
MAJOR CRIME INVESTIGATORS
“Physical evidence can not be intimidated. It does not forget. It sits there and waits to be detected, preserved, evaluated, and explained.” Detective Constable Andy Hooper is currently the investigator assigned to oversee the schematics of the property crime team and is instrumental in ensuring that the H.E.R.O. Program (High Risk Enforcement Repeat Offender program) is operational. This program concentrates on monitoring people who are bound by conditions of bail or probation.
-Herbert Leon Macdonell STAFF SERGEANTS
An exciting addition to this area is the partnership with the Emergency Response Team (E.R.T.) members in Wellington County who have joined the Crime Unit to ensure the H.E.R.O. program continues to be a success.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE COORDINATOR D/Cst. Tanya Beckon is new to the position of Domestic Violence Coordinator for Wellington County. She is responsible for overseeing the integrity of all domestic violence investigations, monitoring all high risk cases, assisting frontline officers with interviews and ensuring all members are properly trained in domestic violence protocol. Detective Constable Beckon works with a variety of community partners on an ongoing basis to ensure that all victims of domestic violence are provided with the necessary tools and support to make a difficult journey more bearable.
Const. Tanya Beckon
HATE/BIAS INVESTIGATOR One of the major crime investigators, Detective Constable Larry Drew also oversees any investigation where a criminal offence committed against a person or property is motivated solely, or in part, upon the race, national or ethnic origin, language, colour, religion, sex, age, mental or physical disability, or sexual orientation of the victim. This type of occurrence takes investigative expertise and the knowledge of the traumatic long-term effects of this type of crime. The Wellington County Crime Unit is forever evolving with the times and as a result is able to provide a commitment to excellence and dedication to the people of Wellington County.
SCENES OF CRIME OFFICERS (S.O.C.O.)
S/Sgt. Scott Smith S/Sgt. Susan Gray and Inspector Steve Walsh The Wellington County Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police has two Staff Sergeants. The Staff Sergeants work closely with the Inspector – Detachment Commander as part of the command team for the detachment. The responsibilities of the Staff Sergeants are split between Operations and Support. The Staff Sergeant – Operations Manager is responsible for everything that happens outside the physical buildings of the detachment. This includes crime and traffic management, day to day response to calls for service and emergency management. The Operations Manager is required to have knowledge and skill related to criminal investigations, traffic management and incident command. The Staff Sergeant – Support Manager is responsible for all the activities occurring within the physical buildings of the detachment. The Support Manager requires a strong understanding of human resources (HR), in order to manage transfers, promotions, new hires, occupational health and safety issues and other matter directly related to the personnel of the detachment. The Staff Sergeants directly supervise the 13 Sergeants in Wellington County.
COMMUNITY SERGEANTS
Scenes of Crime Officers (S.O.C.O.) are front-line uniformed members of the O.P.P. who have received specialized training in the collection, processing and preservation of evidence. The S.O.C.O. program is directly supervised by the Forensic Identification Support Unit located in Mount Forest.
Detective Constables: Andrew Hooper, Jennifer Foley, Heidi Pautsch These investigators primarily focus on occurrences that are deemed “benchmark” occurrences. These benchmark occurrences include: • • • • • • • • • • •
Homicide Attempted murder Sexual offences including child pornography and child luring Criminal Harassment Assault – Level 3 (ie aggravated assault) Robbery Hate/Bias Crime Frauds and False pretences exceeding $25,000 Property Crime exceeding $25,000 Drug Occurrences Other specialized investigations
PROPERTY CRIME INVESTIGATORS The property crime investigators are assigned to support front-line officers with the follow-up of break and enters, mischief occurrences, extensive auto thefts and the overall analysis of property crime trends.
In Wellington County there are 10 trained S.O.C.O. officers. They attend the following types of incidents: break and enters, assaults, domestic assaults, mischief, fires, sudden deaths (natural or traumatic), post mortems, drug warrants, stolen property, recovered stolen vehicles, and traffic collisions. Roles of the S.O.C.O. officer include: attending scenes of criminal and non-criminal incidents, and providing scene examination that may involve crime scene sketches, photography, and the collection and preservation of evidence including: DNA, fingerprints, footwear, tire and tool mark impressions. Exhibits are submitted to the Forensic Identification Support Unit for expert examination. DNA is submitted to the Centre of Forensic Science in Toronto, for examination regarding suitability for DNA upload to the existing National DNA Data bank, and for requests for known suspect DNA comparison. S.O.C.O. Equipment consists of: • Nikon D200 digital camera • Fingerprint kit complete with powders, brushes, and ink for printing cadavers • Casting material for tool impressions and fingerprints • Casting equipment for footwear impressions • Swabs for the collection of DNA Number of Scenes Attended by S.O.C.O. per year: 2007 - 170
2008 - 271
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Sergeants (L to R): Joe Piccione, Warren Fink, Glen Dietrich, (seated): Patrick Horrigan Along with Sergeants assigned to each platoon, each of the four offices within Wellington County, Fergus, Mount Forest Palmerston and Rockwood have a community Sergeant assigned to them. All four Sergeants work together out of their respective offices. Duties include the general administration of the office, vehicle maintenance, property management, inventory control, and disposal of items seized – firearms, drugs, and property. The Sergeants are also a liaison for the community. Sergeants are involved with the local B.I.A., Chamber of Commerce, Municipal Councils, and attend social events and assist with the organization of large community events, e.g.: Fall Fairs, Highland Games, and Hillside Festival.