The province is launching a new counter-human trafficking unit.
Public Safety Minister Nina Krieger was at B.C. RCMP's E Division in Surrey on Wednesday (July 30) for the announcement, joined by Chief Supt. Elija Rain and a representative from the Salvation Army's Illuminate program.
Krieger said the new specialized unit will have 12 members. Investigations used to be part of a counter-exploitation unit that had two members dedicated to human trafficking: one for investigative work and one for administrative work.
Rain said human trafficking is a crime that can be hard to detect, and the new unit strengthens RCMP's ability to investigate these types of crimes.
He said that while this is a provincial unit, the members are also working with counterparts throughout the country, as well as the United States Department of Homeland Security and the FBI.
He said that in B.C., human-trafficking cases have involved victims as young as 11 years old.
More to come.
