The Victoria Police Department welcomed its first-ever female chief constable on Thursday.
At a formal ceremony at Government House in Victoria, Fiona Wilson took command from outgoing-chief Del Manak, who headed the department for almost 10 years.
Before taking over as Victoria’s top cop, Wilson was interim chief at the Vancouver Police Department.
She served more than two and a half decades with the VPD, where she started with roles including patrolling the Downtown Eastside and as an investigator in the Sex Crimes Unit, before moving on to a variety of leadership roles including promotion to deputy chief in 2021.
On Thursday, Wilson said that while she is new to Victoria, she feels that parts of the city are a microcosm of Vancouver, and that she would apply some of the same principles she used to police the mainland.
“I have had 27 years of experience almost in Vancouver, and during that time I’ve spent a lot of time focusing on working to address some of the upstream causes of crime and disorder,” Wilson said.
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“For anyone who knows me, I take a very compassionate approach to social challenges in our communities, but I also think it’s important that everyone in community can enjoy public spaces, so through that lens, I will be tackling those challenges head-on.”
Manak said Thursday that that after a 30-year career with the Victoria police, he was confident he is leaving the department in good hands.
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