Saskatchewan RCMP has arrested multiple wanted persons and seized both illegally-possessed firearms and illicit drugs as a result of a multi-unit response in the Prince Albert, Ahtahkakoop/Shellbrook and Waskesiu/Montreal Lake detachment areas.
Involved units include: the Prince Albert, Ahtahkakoop/Shellbrook and Waskesiu/Montreal Lake detachments; the Prince Albert, North Battleford, La Ronge and Meadow Lake Crime Reduction Teams (CRT); the Prince Albert Warrant Enforcement and Suppression Team (WEST); Combined Traffic Services Saskatchewan; and the Prince Albert General Investigation Section. Further background on the multi-unit response is available here.
Notable events from the multi-unit response include:
- The September 22 arrest of Craig McDonald, who was wanted by Prince Albert RCMP for charges including aggravated assault and robbery with a firearm.
- The September 26 seizure of 28 grams of crack cocaine, three long guns and a hand gun from a residence in Holbein, SK.
- The October 3 seizure of 244 grams of methamphetamine and three firearms during a traffic stop on Ahtahkakoop Cree Nation.
- The October 18 arrest of Ian Felix, who was wanted by Prince Albert RCMP for charges including aggravated assault and robbery with a firearm. Officers located and seized eight restricted firearms from the residence he was arrested in.
- The October 30 arrest of Jared Naytowhow, who was wanted by Prince Albert RCMP for charges including aggravated assault and robbery with a firearm. Officers located and seized a sawed-off shotgun in the residence he was arrested in.
- Additionally, Saskatchewan RCMP's Prince Albert detachment and WEST assisted in the November 1 arrest of Wesley Naytowhow, who has been charged with second-degree murder in relation to an August 2023 homicide.
"Community safety is the number one priority of our frontline detachment police officers. They work hard at maintaining it every day. This fall, officers from Prince Albert, Ahthakakoop/Shellbrook and Waskesiu/Montreal Lake RCMP demonstrated their commitment to community safety as they worked with specialized SERT units to remove wanted people, drugs and firearms from our streets," says S/Sgt. Eric Desfosses, from Saskatchewan RCMP's North District Management Team, which oversees the Prince Albert, Ahtahkakoop/Shellbrook and Waskesiu/Montreal Lake detachments. "Together, we'll continue working to eradicate any risk to the safety of our communities."
"Keeping Saskatchewan's communities safe takes intelligence-led, borderless enforcement. That's why Saskatchewan RCMP is uniquely able to successfully execute targeted, multi-unit enforcement efforts like we saw in the Prince Albert, Ahtahkakoop and Montreal Lake areas this fall," says S/Sgt. Ryan How, the Saskatchewan Enforcement Response Team (SERT)'s North Manager. "I'm proud of the strategic, hard work of all the Saskatchewan RCMP officers involved."
Both S/Sgt. How and S/Sgt. Desfosses also thank members of the media for sharing important investigational updates with the public. They thank the public for their assistance in sharing information and tips; these partnerships help keep communities safe.