ALERT fugitive drive nets five people on outstanding warrants

January 26, 2012

ALERT fugitive drive nets five people on outstanding warrants

Edmonton…The Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams (ALERT) apprehended five people wanted on 24 outstanding warrants for serious offences, such as sexual assault and sexual interference, and laid additional charges against two people.

Following a request for assistance from the Lac La Biche RCMP detachment, ALERT’s Fugitive Apprehension Sheriffs Support Team (FASST) covered over 1,200 kilometres during a three-day warrant drive, tracking down fugitives in areas surrounding Goodfish, Whitefish, Buffalo and Beaver Lakes. The operation took the team as far east as St. Paul and as far west as Boyle.

“Fugitives should know that just because they have left the city doesn’t mean they can hide from us,” said Sergeant Paul Hunter of FAAST. “ALERT maintains a province-wide focus. When it comes to taking criminals off the street, we won’t be limited by municipal boundaries. We will track people wanted on warrants in both rural and urban areas across Alberta to keep our communities safe.”

During the operation, FASST arrested the following people:

• A 28-year-old man from Goodfish Lake was wanted for sexual assault, sexual interference, invitation to sexual touching and anal intercourse. He was also found in breach of his current conditions. A publication ban prevents the release of his name.
• Kenneth BLOOD, a 25-year-old from Buffalo Lake, was wanted for spousal assault and failure to appear.
• Matthew GLADUE, a 28-year-old from St. Paul, was wanted for unlawfully causing harm and criminal negligence causing bodily harm.

Two young offenders, one from Buffalo Lake Métis settlement and the other from Lac La Biche, were also arrested as part of this operation. The first was wanted for break and enter, theft over $5,000, mischief, and failure to appear. Subsequent to the arrest, this young offender was charged with possession of a controlled substance, fraud over $40,000 and credit card offences. The other was wanted for break and enter with the intent to commit assault and failure to comply.

At any given time in Alberta, thousands of people are wanted on nearly 200,000 outstanding arrest warrants. Approximately 8,000 of those warrants involve serious or violent crimes, such as robbery and attempted murder.

FASST tracks and arrests criminals who are wanted on outstanding warrants in Alberta and have previously evaded capture. The team plays an important role in promoting safe, secure communities by arresting criminals who evade capture and decreasing the likelihood of them re-offending and re-victimizing Albertans. The support of FASST allows local police more time and resources to focus on other priorities like community policing and criminal investigations.

ALERT encourages the public to report suspicious activity or tips regarding people wanted on outstanding warrants by calling police or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

Made up of provincial sheriffs, FASST is an ALERT team funded by the Government of Alberta. FASST works with other ALERT units to tackle serious and organized crime around the province. Over 400 municipal police, RCMP and sheriffs work for ALERT.

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