Durham and Calgary Police Officers to Receive Awards for Heroic Efforts in Fighting Financial Crime
CHARLOTTETOWN, PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND--(Marketwire - Aug. 12, 2009) - Shutting down an organized crime syndicate's multi-million dollar card skimming operation and bringing a knife-wielding serial bank robber to justice - these are the heroic actions of this year's recipients of the Canadian Banks' Law Enforcement Award (CBLEA). Detective Jeff Caplan of the Durham Regional Police Service and Detective Stu Keown of the Calgary Police Service will receive the award at this evening's gala ceremony for the annual Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police Conference in Charlottetown.
"It is a great honour to recognize the outstanding efforts of these two individuals who have gone above and beyond the call of duty to combat crime against Canadian banks, their customers and their employees," said Nathalie Clark, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of the Canadian Bankers Association (CBA), who will present the awards this evening on behalf of the banking industry. "Banks in Canada have a close working relationship with police and we assist with many of their investigations. Today's ceremony is a great opportunity to publicly recognize the hard work of two highly dedicated officers."
Detective Jeff Caplan - Durham Regional Police Service
As a member of the Durham Regional Police Service's Major Fraud Unit, Detective Jeff Caplan was a leading investigator with "Project Off-Guard" a joint operation of the Durham Regional Police Service and the Ontario Provincial Police's Organized Crime Unit. In this role, Detective Caplan developed strong relationships with bank security professionals across the Greater Toronto Area to investigate a series of card skimming crimes that were believed to be connected.
Though his collaborative approach and astute investigative skills, Detective Caplan was instrumental in the identification, profiling and arrest of 93 suspects, resulting in 1063 debit and credit card skimming offence charges. The majority of those arrested are believed to be members of a number of organized crime groups.
Detective Caplan has raised the bar for card skimming investigations in Canada and continues to proactively target the organized crime groups behind these operations.
Detective Stu Keown - Calgary Police Service
On October 5, 2007 an unidentified male armed with a knife entered a Calgary bank branch and demanded money from a customer service representative. This marked the beginning of a string of robberies by one of Calgary's most prolific bank robbers. Detective Keown, a 28-year veteran of the Calgary Police Service, was able to profile and identify a suspect who had a prior manslaughter conviction.
Detective Keown developed an operational plan to catch and arrest the dangerous suspect, which took into account the safety and security of bank employees and customers. This plan was shared with all financial institutions in the city of Calgary.
Two months after the suspect's first robbery, a confidential informant provided information which led to an arrest soon after. The suspect was charged with robbing 16 banks and two commercial businesses and is now serving a 12 year federal jail sentence.
About the Canadian Banks' Law Enforcement Award
Since the creation of the CBLEA in 1972, 214 officers from across Canada have been honoured with the Canadian Banks' Law Enforcement Award for their outstanding bravery, dedication and other noteworthy achievements in combating crimes against Canada's banks. For additional information about the CBLEA, please visit www.cba.ca/award.
About the Canadian Bankers Association
The Canadian Bankers Association works on behalf of 50 domestic chartered banks, foreign bank subsidiaries and foreign bank branches operating in Canada and their 263,400 employees. The CBA advocates for efficient and effective public policies governing banks and promotes an understanding of the banking industry and its importance to Canadians and the Canadian economy. For more information please visit www.cba.ca.
