Winnipeg, MB expedites clearance of burglary reports with Virtual Police Response service
Winnipeg, MB Virtual Police Response Burglary Reports
Burglary reports previously spent up to one week in the queue before in-person investigations were conducted. VPR officers asked residents who reported burglaries for their permission to begin investigations via FaceTime or Google Duo. Each appointment included questions about the incident and a virtual walkthrough of the crime scene. This pilot quickly moved burglary cases to the forensics team and compiled the evidence necessary for prosecution.
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Virtual police reporting tool will save the city money, Winnipeg police say - Winnipeg | Globalnews.ca
The pilot project called the 'virtual police response' or VPR project aims to reduce wait times for Winnipeggers looking to file police reports.
Police expanding Virtual Police Response, online reporting - CHVNRadio: Southern Manitoba's hub for local and Christian news, and adult contemporary Christian programming.
The Winnipeg Police Service is exploring new ways to protect the public while promoting overall wellbeing. As many Winnipeggers move to a work-from-home model, the Winnipeg Police Service is still working on the streets. The service is improving existing ways to report a crime to promote overall well-being by allowing citizens to report more crimes from their homes. Authorities will still be meeting judicial requirements to protect Winnipeg citizens by expanding existing services such as online reporting and Virtual Police Response to non-emergent calls. Starting as a pilot project last year, the Virtual Police Response allows citizens to video call the police for break-and-enter calls. The project is the first of its kind in North America. It is now being expanded to respond to non-domestic assault and robbery events that are not in progress where the suspect is unknown. The WPS is also expanding online reporting. Police will be increasing the value of crimes permitted to be reported online from $5,000 to $25,000 and adding a Hit and Run category. Thefts, retail thefts, damages, frauds, and hit and runs are all eligible for online reporting. Authorities say it takes 10 to 15 minutes to report. Telephone reporting will also expand to include non-domestic theft, mischief and damage events that are not in progress. The value of crimes eligible to be reported by phone will be expanded from $5,000 to $25,000. The Winnipeg Police Service is emphasizing that the changes are to ensure "appropriate and prompt service delivery to citizens while ensuring their health and wellbeing" of citizens and officers.
Project Succeeded
Virtual Police Response was expanded to simple assault and robbery cases early in the COVID-19 pandemic. The initial pilot reduced the time spent on in-person investigations by 73% and resulted in 96% resident satisfaction at a total cost of $14,342 CAD.
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