The Yukon has seen “enhanced” gang activity over the past five years or more, according to Justice Minister Tracy-Anne McPhee.
“I've worked in the criminal justice system for more than 30 years here, and there was times when there was not the kind of gang activity that we're seeing now,” she said.
“Suffice it to say that the RCMP are very tapped in.”
During a Nov. 29 press conference to announce more than $4 million through 2028 to help “stop gun crime and gang violence before it starts,” McPhee revealed that she isn’t briefed by RCMP on how many and which gangs are active in the Yukon for security reasons.
“My conversations with the RCMP intentionally avoid things like the names of individuals, things like the names of organizations, but I do receive briefings about the investigations that are ongoing at a very high level,” she said.
“I don't want the individuals who are committing these offences to know that we know who and where they are.”
A law enforcement report from 2022 points to at least five organized crime networks with more than 250 individuals located within and outside the territory operating as part of a growing synthetic opioid market. The report doesn’t name any gangs or groups involved. Police previously declined to name them.
“Yukon RCMP cannot not share the names or scope of information as the Yukon is small and it may alert these groups and/or compromise further investigations,” RCMP communications told the News by email in 2022.
The money announced is part of a continuation of funding from the federal government to address gun and gang violence. The Yukon government previously received $2.3 million from 2018 to 2023.
The money will go towards a community safety and well-being plan for Whitehorse, healing circles and educational tools aimed at keeping youth safe from crime. It will also help fund a food security program for youth at risk, the establishment of an inter-agency table to support Yukon's most vulnerable clients who are at an elevated level and risk to offend, and other initiatives that are aimed at after care and support, per McPhee.
“That is millions of dollars that is dedicated to empowering community organizations and law enforcement to help ensure the safety and well-being of our communities,” McPhee said.
“This funding has been used to prevent and disrupt violence experienced by Yukon communities by hiring and training additional enforcement personnel, improving information sharing, funding community-based prevention activities and increasing local awareness of gang-related issues.”
She said the safer communities and neighbourhood unit, also known as SCAN, has increased its investigation and analytical capacity with three investigators and a crime prevention analyst so that the unit can address the evolving nature of crime.
Contact Dana Hatherly at dana.hatherly@yukon-news.com
