Saskatoon police sent officers to help Ottawa police during protests
Saskatoon police sent members of the public support unit to assist with the enforcement response to the protester encampment in Ottawa last month.
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The Saskatoon Police Service quietly sent some of its own officers to assist the Ottawa Police Service during protests that occupied parts of the capital city’s downtown area earlier this year.
A Feb. 28 letter to Mayor Charlie Clark from Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson was a late addition to the agenda for Thursday’s board of police commissioners meeting.
It expressed gratitude for Saskatoon’s help during the protests “in co-ordinating a successful police enforcement operation in our City’s downtown core, and restoration of peace and order, in response to a prolonged and unlawful occupation by protesters.”
Chief Troy Cooper told the board that “some resources” — members of the public support unit, which manages crowds and protests — were sent to Ottawa in response to a request from Ottawa police.
At February’s police board meeting, when board chair Jo Custead asked if Ottawa police had made a request for assistance, Cooper said Saskatoon police had not received a formal request for resources.
In an interview, Cooper said a request did come soon after the Feb. 17 meeting.
He said the Emergencies Act was invoked and came into effect before Saskatoon police deployed staff to Ottawa and an oversight body co-ordinating the enforcement response to the protests was also implemented. Saskatoon police responded through the RCMP, he said.
The Emergencies Act was invoked on Feb. 14 for the first time in response to the anti-mandate protests that began at the end of January.
Saskatoon officers were on the ground in Ottawa for about one week, Cooper said. He did not specifiy dates or the number of officers.
“They were integrated within the response in downtown Ottawa. So, we were pleased that we were able to have staff that were trained at the same level, that in an emergent situation like that, we could provide resources that could seamlessly be integrated,” he said.
The deployment was not announced to the public.
“I don’t think there was any specific strategy around not advertising the fact that we had staff in Ottawa, although I think it would be unwise for us to disclose (that) some of our resources were not available to us,” Cooper said.
The potential risks of some staff being away were assessed and police ensured there were sufficient resources in Saskatoon if something similar occurred in the city while officers were in Ottawa, he added.
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