Edmonton police chief to share U-Haul attack experience with NFL execs

Police Chief Rod Knecht will address NFL executives next month to share with them the experiences of the Edmonton Police Service on the night of that CFL game that quickly became the backdrop of an attack outside Commonwealth Stadium.

Knecht was invited to present to those in the National Football League’s security services at their meeting near San Diego.

The chief told reporters his staff completed a review of the incident and the Edmonton Eskimos’ game-day procedures last week.

READ MORE: Police, city finalize review of Edmonton sports venues after attack 

“Some minor changes were made to facilitate the safe and efficient movement of the crowds,” chairman Tim O’Brien told Thursday’s commission meeting.

Knecht later told reporters the post-incident review gave them “some lessons learned.”

“There was no loss of life but we can always learn from what we did or didn’t do and we want to share our practices with others.”

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Knecht will make the presentation to the NFL and hopes to bring back some other best practices that can be employed this season.

“We’re going to learn some stuff from them that we can bring back — and obviously we’re hosting the Grey Cup this year — so there’s a real opportunity here to dialog with those folks and see what they do and how they up their game in the United States.”

“It’s a reciprocal relationship where we’re both going to learn from each other on how to best keep the sports-going public safe.”

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In an overview of what his message will be, Knecht said minor things happened, however they got the job done.

READ MORE: Edmonton terror attacks: Police officer stabbed, people struck by U-Haul

“We had smaller issues around deployment and how many cars were involved, that sort of thing. We didn’t have anything big or significant and I think that’s a lot of good fortune came out of that incident.”

“It was the right people at the right time at the right place, doing the right thing and we were very, very fortunate that there was no loss of life.”

LISTEN: Police radio transmissions reveal attempts to stop U-Haul rampage in Edmonton 

Knecht said a second session is being planned with CFL executives.

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The police chief said the victims are recovering and making progress.

“Everybody is actually moving forward with their health,” Knecht said.

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“A couple of people still have some issues. One will have long-standing issues as we understand it right now but hopefully she’s on the road to recovery and the doctors are even saying she’s doing much better than they anticipated, so that’s all good news.”

READ MORE: Who are the victims of Edmonton attacks?

Several people, including the prime minister, have used the term “terrorism” to describe the Sept. 30 attack when Const. Mike Chernyk was assaulted outside of the stadium while on traffic duty.

Knecht said the Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (INSET) is still involved in the case.

“The INSET people are aggressively investigating.

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“They’ve put it forward to the federal prosecutor and I think it’s in that forum right now.”

He’s still confident terrorism-related charges will be laid.

READ MORE: Abdulahi Sharif charged with attempted murder in Edmonton attacks

“That’s a discussion between I think the investigating unit and the federal prosecutor. So from our perspective, from what I know of the investigation, I think the evidence is there to lay a charge.”

Abdulahi Hasan Sharif, 30, is charged with five counts of attempted murder.