V A N C O U V E R P O L I C E D E P A R T M E N T W W W . V P D . C A V O L . 2 N O . 1 | J A N U A R Y 2 0 , 2 0 0 6

BEYOND THE CALLC E L E B R A T I N G O U T S T A N D I N G A C H I E V E M E N T S O F T H E M E N A N D W O M E N O F T H E V P D

THERE ARE SOME CRIMES that are sohorrific and so disturbing that theyrequire and generate an overwhelm-

Teamwork Ends Violent Rapist’s SpreeMore than 80 VPD members worked together on the case

ing team response to solve them.Project SADO is a perfect example.

In December 2003, screams were

heard coming from an area at CrabBeach. The officers who respondedhad no idea they were about touncover one of the most vile andviolent series of sex crimes in thecity’s history. The arrest of DonaldBakker led to an investigation that spread over eight months and involved more than 50 investigators from the VPD andother agencies.

“It was amazing how everyonecame together,” says DetectiveConstable Benedikte Wilkinson,the file coordinator on the case.“We had world-wide cooperation.”

Videotapes were discovered thatdepicted awful acts of assault anddegradation against 60 victims,some of whom were drug-addictedsex trade workers in Vancouver andsome of whom were child victimsin Cambodia.

“I’m a seasoned officer and Ihave never seen anything like it inmy life,” says Wilkinson.

Miraculously, victims wereidentified and the actual crimescenes investigated in Cambodia.

The team members assigned tothis project routinely went beyondthe call, as they sacrificed holidayleave with friends and family topursue this investigation. The disturbing nature of the explicitand violent videotapes took its tolland trauma counselling was made available to all.

“When we were watching thetapes for the first time, the officerbeside me literally gagged and Iplugged my nose because theimages were so repugnant youalmost fell like you could smell it,”says Wilkinson.

The challenges involved neverseemed to faze our investigators.They examined the tapes frame byframe to find clues to the identitiesof the victims. Team members weremotivated by the terrible crimescommitted against these marginal-

ized and helpless women and chil-dren.

“The kids on the tape were fiveto ten years old and had been soldinto the sex trade. But when you goto Cambodia, you see it, you meetthe kids. I was overwhelmed withemotions; you want to take themhome with you.”

The team was able to identify 44 victims and recommended various charges involving sixteen ofthem. Considering there were nocomplaints at the outset, this was anincredible accomplishment.

Donald Bakker was convictedand received a ten year jail sentence.His sentence, unusual for a first timeoffender, reflected the seriousness ofhis crimes and the extraordinarywork of a team of VPD officers thatat one point swelled to 81 members.

Because of their exemplary per-formance, determination and dedi-cation to duty, this team received the Chief Constable’s Unit Citation.

THERE IS NO MORE DEFINITIVE TEST FOR BRAVERY thanthe willingness to dive into frigid, dark and deadlywaters to save the life of another. On the night ofJanuary 2, 2006, Constable Gerry Proctor faced that test, putting his own life in extreme jeopardy withouthesitation.

Constable Proctor had been following a pickup truck that was being driven erratically when the truckdisappeared from view into the Fraser River. As he gotcloser, he saw a man waist deep in the water shouting forhelp and heard cries from a woman further out in theriver. The man was Keith Finsterwald who was tenting inthe area. The woman was one of two occupants of thepickup truck. She had escaped from the submergedtruck with a broken leg and was screaming for help; hercompanion, the driver, did not escape.

“She pops up, it’s an easy decision,” said ConstableProctor. “There she is. You can swim. Go get her.”

Without waiting for assistance, Constable Proctorbegan stripping off his heavy gear so he would not bedragged down in the powerful current. Mr. Finsterwaldrushed into the water, but because he could not swim heran back to help the officer.

“I was trying to take my boots off and I couldn’t take

my boots off because I guess I knotted it in the franticmoment and I’m shouting to Finsterwald to help mewith my boots.”

When Mr. Finsterwald came running backConstable Proctor recalls saying, “Take my bloody bootoff for me, will you?”

Meanwhile, the woman had been carried 50 metersby the strong current as Constable Proctor dove intothe murky river to save her. The water chilled him tothe bone as he fought the current to grab hold of hershirt and tow her to shore. Her companion did notsurvive.

“If you save two guys and get them both out, thenmaybe you can high-five and say, yeah that felt good.

But there’s a family going to a funeral soon andthe girl has lost her boyfriend, so there’s a lot oftragedy in it.”

Constable Proctor demonstrated extreme dedication to duty by risking his life to save another.The Vancouver Police Department was pleased to present Constable Gerry Proctor with its highest awardfor bravery, the Award of Valour. The department wasalso pleased to present Keith Finsterwald with its high-est award for civilian bravery, the Certificate of Merit.

Officer Dives into DeadlyWaters to Save the Life ofan Injured WomanConstable Gerry Proctor says it was “an easy decision”

Constable Gerry Proctor braved the murky waters of the Fraser River to save a life.

Detective Constable Benedikte Wilkinson and Detective Ron Bieg were the key investigators who put awayrapist Donald Bakker.

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2 | beyond the call | january 20, 2006

IT TAKES A SPECIAL TYPE of courageto step up, place yourself at risk andvolunteer to do something you havenever done before. But when aman’s life was at stake, ConstablesAlan Mah and Michael Griffin didn’t hesitate to do just that.

On January 21, 2005 at fiveo’clock in the morning, a very distraught and extremely depressedman was teetering on the outer railof the Lions Gate Bridge. Policeimmediately put out the call for anon-duty negotiating team.Constable Alan Mah answered thecall, even though he had never beena primary negotiator at a crisis. Hehad received hostage negotiatortraining three years before but was

Saving a Life by Talking a Man off a LedgeIt takes skill whether you have the training or not

DYING OF AN OVERDOSE is a sadbut common reality facing themany drug addicts who survive onthe streets of Vancouver’s poorestneighborhood, known as theDowntown Eastside, but whenthree people died of heroin over-doses in one weekend last August,the VPD immediately became sus-picious that something was killingthe city’s addicts.

Police took immediate andextraordinary measures in order tosave as many lives as they could.

The first step was to launch amedia blitz to alert the communitythat some form of “hot” heroinmight be on the street. This infor-mation ran on radio, television andin print within hours of the realiza-tion of the problem.

Even though no one knew for

Vancouver Police Take Extraordinary Measures to Savethe Lives of Downtown Drug AddictsCompassionate efforts went beyond the call

SOME CRIMES ARE SO MASSIVE inscope and complexity that they posea daunting challenge even for thelargest and best equipped lawenforcement agencies. But when anenormous fraud scheme is assignedto a lone investigator, who against allodds is successful in bringing thecriminals to justice, the accomplish-ment is truly extraordinary.

Detective Mark Mounce washanded a seemingly impossible taskin the summer of 2001 whenPharmacare identified a systemicfraud being operated by three localpharmacies, which were overchargingthe government for millions of dol-lars worth of irregular methadonebillings. The case quickly developedinto the largest fraud investigationthe VPD Financial Crime Section hasever assigned to a single investigator.

“I don’t think I realized how bigit was until we executed the searchwarrants,” says Det. Mounce. “Once Isaw all the exhibits in boxes it hit me.It took six months just to cataloguethem.”

Lone Detective CracksGiant Fraud Case Years of solitary slogging pay off

ONE OF THE MOST DANGEROUSsituations a police officer ever hasto face is when he or she is con-fronted with a person so dis-traught that they are willing toattack them with every intentionof being killed in return. It is a situation that evokes dread inmost police officers. They call it“suicide by cop.”

That’s what Constables KeithJordison and Jason Tremblayfaced on Christmas Eve 2004,when they entered a house onTurner Street to find a near hysterical man wielding a knifeand threatening at times to cuthis own throat. They were able todetain him in a small kitchen atgun point, but the situationquickly became worse when high-ly agitated family members triedto push past the two officers.

Constables Adam MacGregorand George Specht arrived toassist and keep the family mem-bers safely out of the kitchen.Now four officers were crowdingthe small kitchen, each of themwithin lunging distance of theperson who had begun pointingthe knife at them and screamingthat he would commit suicide bycop. They played a life and deathwaiting game until ConstablesShawn Bollivar and John Christiearrived with a bean bag shotgunto safely disarm the man.

“Adam said the man wascounting down so I knew I didn’thave very much time,” saysConstable Bollivar. “You come to a point where you know thatverbal commands are not goingto work anymore. We’re lucky wecould get there so quickly and Iwas relieved that no one gothurt.”

This team showed outstand-ing courage and professionalismin dealing with an incident thatcould well have ended in thedeath or injury of a family member or a police officer.Constables George Specht, AdamMacGregor, Keith Jordison, JasonTremblay, Shawn Bollivar andJohn Christie received the ChiefConstable’s Unit Citation.

Every OfficerDreads thisType of CallKeeping everyone aliveand uninjured is the goal

not assigned to that duty.Despite his lack of experience

he didn’t hesitate to rush to thebridge, designating his partnerConstable Griffin as the secondarynegotiator. Not only had his partner never been trained as anegotiator, Constable Griffin hadonly nine months experience as apolice officer.

“I was fresh out of the academy,” says Griffin. “It wasfrightening; he could have goneover the edge at any minute.”

With little regard for the risk totheir own safety, the two officersclimbed to where the suicidal manwas perched on the rail. AsConstable Mah tried to calm the

man, he noticed that occasionallythe man closed his eyes whenspeaking. It was during one ofthose fleeting moments that thetwo constables leaped forward,pulling the man to the bridge deckand saving his life.

“It definitely felt excitingbecause you had done somethinggood,” says Griffin. “The nextthing you hope is that thingschange for the man and that lifeimproves and what you have donedoes not go to waste.”

For demonstrating extraordi-nary initiative and valour,Constables Alan Mah and MichaelGriffin received the ChiefConstable’s Commendation.

For two years Detective Mounceworked full time, sifting through43,000 exhibits.

“I was locked away in a dustyroom for months and it wasn’t excit-ing work. It is very difficult to stayfocused and see the light at the endof the tunnel when you’re workingalone.”

His investigation led him intopreviously unexplored areas. Hedeveloped new methods and proto-cols that have since set new stan-dards. Even while shutting down therogue pharmacies he developedmethods to protect patients’ privacyand needs.

Some of the criminal trials arestill pending, but one pharmacist hasalready been convicted and sentencedto two years in jail. The civil processhas recovered close to $2 million.

For his extreme dedication andextraordinary investigative andadministrative skills, Detective MarkMounce received the VancouverPolice Department’s ChiefConstable’s Commendation.

sure the heroin supply had beencontaminated, District Two offi-cers decided it was better to be safethan sorry. Police created and dis-tributed flyers and posters to alertdrug users to the potential newdanger. Emergency measures weretaken to identify the cause of theseoverdose deaths. Beat officerswarned the drug-using communityand encouraged the use of theSupervised Injection Site.

These steps fall outside the nor-mal traditions of policing, but liveswere at stake. The role of policeenforcer temporarily took a backseat in order to allow officers towork with the drug-using commu-nity and to focus their efforts onthe higher purpose of protectingthe safety of the public in the mosteffective manner possible.

It was the right decision. Moreoverdose deaths soon confirmedthat heroin users were dying innumbers not seen for more than adecade.

Investigators learned that alarge quantity of stolen pharmaceu-tical methadone was being sold onthe street to heroin users. It wasalmost immediately fatal wheninjected.

Police officers combed theDowntown Eastside streets, barsand rooming houses. They interviewed street sources and suspects with the single objective ofnegotiating the recovery of as muchof the deadly narcotics as quickly aspossible. Sources reported that theintense police pressure was effectivein forcing drug dealers to stop ped-dling methadone for fear of arrest.

By September 25, police hadrecovered 250 grams of methadone– enough to have put an additional3,000 flaps of the fatal drug on thestreet. The last of the methadoneoverdoses occurred on September 1.The death toll had reached 13, butbecause of the extraordinary actionsof the investigators, street officersand community partners, not oneother person would die from thestolen methadone.

Detective Mark Mounce single handedly tackled the biggest case of his career.

Constable Michael Griffin was “fresh out of the academy.”

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beyond the call | january 20, 2006 | 3

POLICE OFFICERS require an excep-tional range of emotional control inorder to do their jobs well. It takesthat degree of control to deal com-passionately with someone who mayhave just tried to injure or kill you.It’s a skill that very few jobs require.

It’s also a skill that ConstablesSandra Glendinning and JamesHamade put to good use on March12, 2005, while trying to execute awarrant. As they approached thewanted man they were unaware hehad psychiatric issues and had notbeen taking his medication. Since hehad his back to them, they were alsounaware he was holding a largekitchen knife.

“We knew there was somethingconcealed in his hand and that therewere other weapons on the floor,”says Constable Glendinning. “All Icould think of was that I couldn’tlet him arm himself with any otherweapons.”

As Constable Glendinninggrabbed the man’s left hand, helunged at Constable Hamade withthe knife in his right hand. A strug-gle ensued as the man continued totry to plunge the knife into thepolice officer’s chest.

PoliceOfficersNever Makeit PersonalBeing attacked is just part ofthe job

While it is expected that every policeofficer will be justly proud of theirdepartment, occasionally an officertakes that pride beyond the call toactually become an active championof the department. No one couldargue that Constable James Pearsonis not a champion of the VancouverPolice Department.

“Every officer is a champion ofthe department,” says Pearson with a

Constable James Pearson has been leading the way for years

“I thought for sure this was sui-cide by cop,” says Glendinning.

They eventually disarmed him,but because of his frenzied strengththey needed backup officers to helprestrain him.

In the aftermath of what easily

could have been a tragic incident,Constables Glendinning and Hamadewere calm, professional and consideratein dealing with the man and his family.They were empathic and understand-ing, speaking with distraught familymembers who thanked them for their

restraint. “His stepfather couldn’t

quite manage to shake my handafterwards, but he thanked mevery much for not shooting hisstepson. Keeping your emotionsin check is something you have

to do. If you can’t, you’re in thewrong line of work. You can’t ever letit get personal, if you do, you lose.”

For extraordinary performance ofduty, Constables Sandra Glendinningand James Hamade received the ChiefConstable’s Commendation.

Making Sure the VPD Puts its Best Foot Forward

characteristic reluctance to hog thespotlight. “Every time you put youruniform on you are a champion forthe department.”

For the past two years ConstablePearson has held the appointed rankof Departmental Sergeant Major. Inthat role he has proven invaluable inorganizing events such as parades,Remembrance Day ceremonies andthe Police and Peace Officers’

Memorial. He was instrumental inorganizing the memorial held inVancouver for the four RCMP mem-bers slain in Alberta. Because of hisorganizational skills and vast knowl-edge of protocol he has also becomea key resource for other departments.

Constable Pearson’s dedicationto this role and to the departmenthas helped build esprit de corpswithin the VPD and in the policing

com-munity asa whole. Hehas donemuch of thiswork on his owntime, committing hundreds of off-duty hours without compensation.

“It’s my wife who should reallybe getting this award. I did

nothing more than anyoneelse would have done.”

VPD members agreethat Constable Pearson gives

them all a sense of pride in theevents they attend.For his drive, enthusiasm and

unwavering dedication to the VPD,Constable James Pearson receivedthe Chief Constable’sCommendation.

COMMONLY WHEN THE PHONE RINGS in this small unitof staff and volunteers, it means the life of someone hasbeen affected by crime and/or trauma. The VictimServices Unit provides support services to victims andwitnesses whose lives have been affected by crime. Theirphone rings about 2000 times a year and they know thatthey will be called to a scene about 220 times in the sameperiod.

But this time the call was different. On October 26,2005, Constable David Hopp was attempting to help adistraught 84-year-old woman with a bizarre tale. Shetold him that her son had taken all her belongings whenshe was out of town and donated them to Value Village.She had lost everything: clothes, household items, and,most importantly, family photos and keepsakes that shewas saving for her grandchildren.

Her story became even more poignant whenConstable Hopp learned that employees at the store hadfound and turned over to the department $8,000 she hadbeen saving in purses her son gave away. Constable Hopptook an extraordinary course of action. He called LeahKelsey and Gwen Hay from the VPD Victim Services Unitand together they took the elderly woman to ValueVillage on the slim chance they could get her belongingsback.

“This was very unusual for us,” says Kelsey. “No crimehad been committed because her son lived with her andthought she had too much stuff. But you could see thatshe was heartbroken and her situation touched us all.”

The employees at the store were also touched andagreed to do everything they could to find the woman’s

For the Vancouver Police Victim Services Unit it was a Call Like No Otherbelongings and return them to her. First they needed a list of what had been taken. Leah Kelsey started the difficult job of helping the woman write down everythingshe could remember.

“Imagine if someone asked you to make a list of allyour belongings from memory,” says Kelsey. “It wouldn’tbe easy for any of us.”

Kelsey and Hay, along with Constable Hopp, beganpushing two shopping carts around the store in search ofthe mementos and keepsakes of this frail woman’s life.

“Seeing how vulnerable she was we couldn’t leaveher,” says Hay. “She had been an army nurse and raisedfour children. She had lived her life in second-handclothes to put her children through university and amongthe personal items she found on the shelves was one ofher son’s framed PhD.”

The search continued, occasionally netting a prize,such as items that her mother had knitted for her whenshe was a child. Other times, the disappointments werepainful.

“When she saw that something dear to her was gone,she would just put her head down.”

In the end, the team from the VPD, along with thecaring staff at Value Village, were able to return many ofthe woman’s possessions. It’s a call they will never forgetand, although unlike any they have ever received, they sayit fits nicely with the vision of the VPD Victim ServicesUnit:

To provide victims and witnesses with professional,supportive and timely assistance, to lessen the impact ofcrime and trauma.

Civilian Gwen Hay from Victim Services works to make a difference.

Constable Sandra Glendinning, one of last year's Award of Valour winners, once again distinguishes herself in the line of duty.

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4 | beyond the call | january 20, 2006

ON DECEMBER 12, 2005 theVancouver Police Departmentlaunched one of the most extensiveand innovative crime preventionprogram ever undertaken by anypolice department in NorthAmerica.

“We asked ourselves how can wereduce one of the highest propertycrime rates on the continent,” saysVPD Chief Constable JamieGraham. “We knew that we did nothave the police resources to do itentirely by ourselves. The figureswere just too staggering.”

Every year in Vancouver morethan 6,000 homes are invaded bythieves. Last year more than 18,000vehicles were stolen or broken into.Vancouver citizens say that this istheir number one crime concern.

The VPD has promised toreduce property crime by 20 percent over five years. The depart-ment is already halfway to thatgoal. Property crime in the city isdown 10 per cent due to the effortsof very dedicated police officers andvolunteers. Now it was time foreveryone to take a role in the fightagainst property crime.

“We knew that extraordinarylevels of crime would take extraor-dinary efforts to combat it,” saysChief Graham

“We knew that it would take acommunity effort and as we

reached out for assistance inspreading the message, the responsewas immediate and overwhelming.Contributions in terms of time,funds, creative products and freeadvertising space would eventuallyequal about half a million dollars.”

The creative team at RethinkAdvertising designed an entire cam-paign that asks the question, “Areyou helping thieves?”

They produced brilliant televi-sion and radio spots, indoor andoutdoor posters, innovative printads and a provocative and helpfulbrochure.

Other corporate citizens,including ICBC, got involved. Theirgenerosity made it possible to com-plete many of the ideas that previ-ously had just existed on paper.

The talented marketing team atKwantlen University College pro-duced an entertaining and informa-tive website (www.vpd.ca) that fea-tures all the ways that you canmake your home and vehicle moresecure. There is even a quiz to learnwhether you are indeed helpingthieves.

Those who do not have accessto a computer can visit one of theCommunity Policing Centers in thecity to receive a brochure withhome safety tips and informationon how to join Block Watch.

“Building the creative message

Are you Helping Thieves? Innovative crime prevention programs sweeps the city

THERE IS A BOND among policeofficers that is built on trust andthe unswerving knowledge thatevery member is ready and willingto protect your life with theirs. Inthe early morning hours ofSeptember 30, 2005 Sergeant FionaWeller and Constable Dave Popilbet their lives on that trust.

Sergeant Weller put herself inharm’s way when she cornered aman she suspected of breaking intoa number of homes in the neigh-borhood. The man refused herorder to place his hands on a near-by fence railing and instead came

Two Officers Risk their Own Livesto Save the OtherQuick action and team work prevented injury or death

towards her with one hand con-cealed behind his back. She had asinking feeling that she knew whatwas on his mind and in his hand.

“I knew this was not going to bea good day,” says Sgt. Weller. “It wasclassic, I’ve seen this before andknew it was not good. My hand wasdown ready to draw.”

But just as she was about todraw her pistol, Constable Popilarrived, approaching the man frombehind.

“Dave and I have been partnersfor a long time. I knew immediatelythat my gun was no longer an

and the target website however, wasjust half the battle. How could weensure that people actually saw themessage? This is where we turned to the rest of our partners.

Chief Kind offeredto place our posters onevery Skytrain plat-form in the city. TheCity of Vancouver gaveus space to put theposters in many busshelters. And the mediaoutlets in Vancouverjoined hands in a waywe have never wit-nessed before.”

Broadcast outletsacross the city agreedto run the televisionand radio spots as freepublic serviceannouncements.Vancouver’s newspa-pers and magazinesoffered to run printads.

“Sometimes ittakes a village to keep avillage safe,” says ChiefGraham. “We believethat this unprecedent-ed campaign, with thehelp of so many others,will provide every citi-zen of Vancouver withthe information they

need to secure their homes and cars.We won’t rest when we achieve

our goal of 20 per cent reduction,

we will continue to drive down therate of property crime in our cityusing every tool we can command.”

B E YO N D T H E C A L LBeyond the Call is a publication produced by thePublic Affairs and Marketing Section of the VancouverPolice Department with articles submitted and writtenby civilian and sworn members.

For more information please contact 604-717-2680 or email at media@vpd.ca

EDITOR Sgt. Anne Drennan

PHOTO EDITORGeorgina Spencer

COPY EDITOR Laurel Kennedy

CONTRIBUTORSConstable Tim FanningConstable Howard ChowSgt. Dave Thompson

ON JUNE 28, 2005, Inspector Axel Hovbrender was invested as aMember of the Order of Merit of the Police Forces in a ceremonypresided over by then Governor-General Adrienne Clarkson. The Order of Merit of the Police Forces was created in 2000 as ameans of recognizing conspicuous merit and exceptional serviceby police officers. Inspector Hovbrender was recognized for hiscontribution to a wide variety of police and public safety issuesand for successfully applying his expertise to various communitypolicing strategies. His initiatives have resulted in improvedpolice-community partnerships and increased safety for vulnerable victims. He was one of 45 police officers nationally recognized at this investiture ceremony.

option.”Sgt. Weller didn’t want to risk

any harm to Constable Popil in alethal crossfire so she drew herbaton instead. As the man contin-ued to advance on Sgt. Weller,Constable Popil had to make a splitsecond decision. To avoid catchingSgt. Weller in a crossfire he riskedhis life by lunging at the man, forc-ing him to the ground and forcinghim to drop a pair of 9 inch scissorswith 5 inch blades.

“It happened very fast,” saysSgt. Weller. “I could have been inserious trouble.”

These two members placedtheir own lives in jeopardy in orderto safeguard the life of the other. Inthe process they likely also savedthe life of a career criminal whoreceived a three and half year sentence for the robberies he committed.

For their extreme dedication,courage and respect for life,Sergeant Fiona Weller andConstable Dave Popil received theVancouver Police Department’sChief Constable’s Commendation.

Long-time patrol partners ConstableDave Popil and Sergeant FionaWeller look out for each other

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