There’s a new commanding officer of the Manitoba RCMP, and he says he’s happy to be taking on the role of top cop in his home province.
Assistant Commissioner Scott McMurchy, a 34-year veteran of the police force, told Global News he’s looking forward to leading the province’s Mounties in their ongoing efforts to tackle crime all over Manitoba.
“I’m very honoured to have been appointed and given the privilege to be the commanding officer for Manitoba’s RCMP,” McMurchy told Global Winnipeg.
“Being from Manitoba, I’m deeply rooted in this province, and very invested in continuing to serve Manitobans.”
McMurchy, who replaces the previous commanding officer, Rob Hill, was born in Rossburn, Man., and grew up in The Pas — which he said he still considers his home community.
His police career began in Saskatchewan, he said, but brought him back home to Manitoba in the mid-2000s, serving in a number of roles in Gillam, and later Thompson, where he became the operations officer for the RCMP’s north district.
In 2015, McMurchy transferred to Winnipeg, where he’s remained over the past eight years and counting.
McMurchy said Manitoba’s geography presents unique situations when it comes to fighting crime, but a big part of his plan as commanding officer will be to build and maintain relationships with Manitobans — both police and civilians — who are seeing the impact of crime in their communities first-hand.
“A priority of mine will be to continue to work on integrated policing with some of our police partners here in Manitoba … really to share information, collaborate and work together,” he said.
“We all need to work together to ensure the safety of Manitobans is at the forefront. I want to really continue to support the relationships I’ve established through my career … to hear from leadership in the communities, hear from citizens in the communities, and encourage them to come forward and tell us what they would like to see from the RCMP.
“There’s always opportunities for us to improve our service and make it more community-based in many areas.”