Edmonton police acknowledges dropping detainees on Chinatown streets for years
Police Chief Warren Driechel says the practice isn't desirable but has been happening; business leaders push for better release protocols.
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Edmonton Police Chief Warren Driechel acknowledged Wednesday that officers have been dropping detainees directly onto Chinatown streets, confirming a practice that business leaders and city councillors have been pushing the province to stop.
"Ultimately, just dropping someone off in the street is not the desirable outcome," Driechel told reporters. "We know we've been doing it and we're trying to work with the community and understand that."
A video recorded Sunday around 8 p.m. in an alley on the west side of Pacific Mall shows an officer removing handcuffs from a person pressed against a marked EPS van. The alley is private property owned by Yorkton Group, according to Karl Miu, a consultant for the company and vice-chair of the Chinatown Business Improvement Area. "The alleyway is actually a private property of the Yorkton Group, so the van is actually trespassing," Miu said.
Alberta corrections officers dropped off a former inmate at the same location last month, triggering separate complaints from Chinatown business leaders. Driechel said EPS usually picks up people from other parts of the city to connect them with services like Hope Mission, rather than releasing inmates directly from correctional facilities. The officers involved in the recent video were not part of the downtown division.
Driechel framed the challenge as structural: "It's a challenge, where you have Chinatown, and you have all those services and shelters co-located there." The drop-offs could relate to connecting someone with services or releasing someone related to an event that doesn't require a court appearance, he said.
Kat Luu, Interim Executive Director for the Chinatown Business Improvement Area, said she's aware EPS is working on improving release protocols. Miu and others are pushing for better release and reintegration programs from the provincial government, characterizing the current approach as treating a symptom rather than addressing the root problem.
As HOC reported in September, a corrections van released a detainee in a Chinatown parking lot, and Alberta Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis said the drop-off happened because of human error, not policy.
What specific changes to release protocols is EPS implementing, and by when?
How many detainees have been dropped in Chinatown under EPS and corrections procedures in the past year?
We'll update this story as answers emerge.
The facts
What did Edmonton Police Chief Warren Driechel acknowledge on Wednesday, October 7, 2026?
Police Chief Warren Driechel acknowledged that Edmonton Police Service officers have been dropping detainees directly onto Chinatown streets, and stated that this practice is not desirable.
What was shown in a video recorded on Sunday, October 4, 2026?
A video recorded around 8 p.m. on Sunday, October 4, 2026 in an alley on the west side of Pacific Mall showed an officer removing handcuffs from a person pressed against a marked EPS van.
Why do business leaders say the van in the video was trespassing?
The alley where the video was recorded is private property owned by Yorkton Group, according to Karl Miu, a consultant for the company and vice-chair of the Chinatown Business Improvement Area.
