There's a new top cop in Morinville, and he says he's very interested in traffic safety.
Staff Sgt. Riz Suleman stepped up as the commanding officer of the Morinville RCMP on Monday. He replaces Sgt. Mark Mathias, who is headed to a new job at K-Division headquarters in Edmonton after four years with the detachment.
Mathias introduced Suleman to Sturgeon County council at the council's regular meeting Tuesday.
Mathias has been the Morinville detachment's commander on and off over the last four years, subbing in for Mac Richards and Tom Love.
Staff Sgt. Love replaced Richards in 2013 but was soon temporarily pulled away to K-Division. He later returned, only for the move to become permanent last December, Mathias said in an interview.
Mathias, meanwhile, explained that he had had his eye on a job at K-Division for the last few months. He held off on moving, though, as there wasn't a replacement for him available.
A Sherwood Park resident with a wife, two daughters and a penchant for golf, Suleman, 43, comes to Morinville after a one-year stint as the provincial traffic safety liaison for Alberta Transportation. He previously did eight years with the Grande Prairie RCMP, where he worked on community policing and traffic and served as watch commander.
Working for the province was fun, but Suleman said he missed having his boots on the ground as a local cop.
"What I love is general-duty policing," he said.
"I get to interact with the community and the people to try and make a real difference."
Suleman said he'd heard nothing but good things about Morinville, and has wanted to work here ever since he became a staff sergeant three years ago.
"Traffic safety is a big thing for me as well," he noted, and he wanted to hear more about local trouble spots such as Cardiff Corner.
"Speeding, stop-sign (running), not wearing a seatbelt and drinking while driving, that's what kills lives … that's where you can make a difference keeping your community safe."
Farewell tour
Mathias, 48, said he's still with the Morinville detachment and plans to move to K-Division in a month or so – plenty of time to say goodbye to the local councils.
"This is sort of Stop One of the farewell tour."
Mathias said he wanted to try something new after 23 years of community policing. His new job is to be a staff sergeant with the Special I division.
"We don't talk a lot about what Special I is," he said.
Special I is the RCMP's electronic surveillance division, confirmed a K-Division spokesperson.
Mathias said he would be a human resources manager with the unit. The "I" stands for "investigation," he added.
Looking back at his time in town, Mathias said he was proud of how the detachment handled the last year of the Boonstock festival in 2013, and how officers stepped up during that year's floods in southern Alberta.
Mathias also told council of several ongoing challenges at the detachment.
A rise in the number of alarm systems in the county means officers were now responding to hundreds of alarm calls per year, many of which were false alarms.
"That's a big drain on resources."
The detachment also had just three officers trained to do the DARE program (they had more, but they keep rotating out), and would likely have to start teaching it in alternate years at local schools as a result, Mathias said.
Mathias also told council that he and his family have no plans to move from Morinville once he switches to his new post.
"I'm commuting. I'm not leaving the community. I love this place."
The Morinville detachment polices most of Sturgeon County, including Bon Accord, Legal, Gibbons and Alexander First Nation.
