The province has introduced a new police investigative squad that will focus on solving gang-related murders in British Columbia.
The Integrated Gang Homicide Team will be a pilot program under the command of IHIT, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team.
According to IHIT Supt. Mandeep Mooker, gang-related homicides currently make up 46 per cent of all homicides in the province.
“As the gang landscape evolves, so must our approach,” said Mooker. “The biggest piece is the sophistication behind these homicides, the amount of planning that goes into them. They usually take time to plan and have many players.”
The new unit will draw personnel from IHIT, the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit of B.C. (CFSEU) and the Organized Crime Agency of B.C., with a total of 12 core officers.
Mooker said formation of the Integrated Gang Homicide Team will allow IHIT to better focus on non-gang-related homicides.
B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said the new squad will be better versed in the complexities of gang-related homicides.
Since 2003, gang-related homicides in B.C. have risen from 21 per cent of homicides to 46 per cent in 2023.
IHIT is the homicide investigative service in 29 RCMP communities and 4 municipal police communities. The Vancouver Police Department is not a member of IHIT.
The CFSEU is a 400-officer integrated anti-gang unit made up of members from every police force in the province, according to its website.
As of December 2023, IHIT reported 356 unsolved homicides.