The growth of the Sagamok Anishnawbek First Nation police services has led to the Anishinabek Police Services opening a new detachment.
The new detachment was officially last Friday, May 19th, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony featuring an Elder and a youth from the larger community. The opening ceremony featured a prayer by Elder Grace Manitowabi and a smudge ceremony provided by Fire Chief Bruce Southwind.
The ribbon cutting was hosted by Gimaa Angus Toulouse, APS Police Chief Jeff Skye, APS Inspector Mark LeSage, Detachment Commander Vern Macumber, and the member officers.
Elder Manitowabi told the gathering “The police can’t do it alone. We have to work with them to make sure our community is safe.
The local detachment now has five officers and one sergeant. The new detachment building itself features two holding cells, a fingerprint room, and an IT/Guard Monitoring Room, as well as a sally port entry garage, hard and soft interview rooms, a family room, a conference room, and administrative spaces. A welcome addition is the four new pod units for officers to use when not on duty, allowing them to stay in the community between shifts rather than commuting each day. Each pod is a furnished bedroom unit with access to on-site kitchen and laundry facilities.
A community barbecue was held following the ribbon-cutting providing an opportunity to meet the new officers, talk about policing programming, and networking with the community leaders.
