Kidnapping incident completely drains Port Moody Police’s major incident reserve

A recent kidnapping incident in Port Moody has completely drained the Port Moody Police’s (PMP) major incident reserve.

The police response – which required calling in assistance from the Vancouver Police Major Crimes Unit and the Lower Mainland RCMP Integrated Emergency Response Team – has left Port Moody on the hook for approximately $400,000.

Coun. Callan Morrison raised the issue during budget discussion on Tuesday, June 20, noting the one incident equates to 0.7 percent of the total budget.

“That incident may have occurred in Port Moody, but it occurred over multiple municipalities ending in a completely different one than ours,” Morrison said. 

The kidnapping took place on April 19, 2023, and involved a man in his 40s being pulled off Murray Street into a van by the assailants.

The victim was eventually rescued from the Mission area several days later, with five suspects arrested and facing charges which include kidnapping, forcible confinement and conspiracy to commit an indictable offence.

The response of law enforcement required significant technical and human resources, and involved several hundred police officers and support staff, according to the budget report.

Port Moody Police’s major incident reserve had a balance of $339,999 prior to the incident, which has now been entirely depleted.

The reserve is funded through surpluses in PMP’s major crimes operating budget. 

The department had only budgeted for around $75,000 to be transferred to its operating reserves from 2022 to 2026, according to the city’s 2022 five-year financial plan.

Morrison asked if there was any way the city could recoup those costs, adding he was concerned about future expenses due to rising crime across the region.

PMP Chief Dave Fleugel said the department was trying to recover some of these costs from the province, but he’s not “overly optimistic.”

“There are some certain funding envelopes, but they are not looking very good for us in a reactive file,” Fleugel said. “They’re mainly designed to have a future project and develop a budget to target a certain individual in an organized crime.”