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The Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) has formally launched a dedicated six-officer Offender Management Unit (OMU) within its Intimate Partner Violence Unit (IPVU) to strengthen public safety and address the growing number of intimate partner violence cases in the region.
The move comes after Halton Region declared Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) an epidemic in June 2023, the same year police processed more than 3,500 IPV incidents, resulting in 894 arrests and 2,059 charges. On average, 80 to 100 high-risk offenders remain at large in the community at any given time.
HRPS first tested the OMU concept through a one-year pilot project in 2023. That team of five officers arrested 170 offenders and laid 430 additional charges, leading to the permanent approval of a six-officer team as part of the Service’s 2025 operating budget. Officials say it is the first specialized unit of its kind in Ontario.
“I am extraordinarily proud that our Intimate Partner Violence Unit has become the first in the province to expand to include a permanent, full-time Offender Management Unit,” says Deputy Chief Jeff Hill. “We are better equipped than any time in our history to identify, monitor, and apprehend high-risk individuals who pose a clear and real threat to public safety. It also demonstrates our ongoing commitment to innovation in policing, and to building a model of IPV intervention that other jurisdictions can look to.”
The new OMU, officially reintroduced this past April, will focus on locating and arresting IPV offenders, conducting compliance checks, and supporting early intervention strategies.
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