Greater Victoria Area Police Chiefs (episode 2 of 5) - Chief Ian Lawson - Central Saanich Police Service Artwork

True Blue Podcast

Go behind the scenes with members from the Victoria City Police Union (VCPU). A long format podcast giving you an in depth glimpse into lives of police officers working in Esquimalt and Victoria. You won't find content like this anywhere else and you will hear regular interviews from a diverse group of VCPU members telling their stories.

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True Blue Podcast

Greater Victoria Area Police Chiefs (episode 2 of 5) - Chief Ian Lawson - Central Saanich Police Service

September 05, 2025 • Matt Waterman/Todd Mason • Season 5 • Episode 9

Chief Constable Ian Lawson started his policing career in the RCMP back in 1988. He’s spent most of his RCMP career on Vancouver Island and after 32 years’ service he accepted the Chief Constable position in Central Saanich. Ian was the Primary Investigator on the BC Rail corruption scandal where Bribery and Fraud charges were pursued.

One of Ian’s favourite career moves was to become the Detachment Commander in Shawnigan Lake, a position he relates closely to his current job in Central Saanich. Recruiting new officers to Central Saanich has been a challenge for the past number of years but they’ve been able to secure 2 or 3 seats for recruits to attend the JIBC this year and next. Central Saanich has not signed on to the integrated K-9 service but does have several opportunities for his members to work in other integrated units.

Ian tells a story about how repeat criminals on court conditions used to be held in custody and how now it’s frustrating to see the Bail Reform Act not being applied correctly. Chief Lawson mentioned his concerns about hospital wait times and ability to respond to crime on the water. We get Ian to chat about Regionalization/Amalgamation/Integration from his perspective.

https://www.cspolice.ca/

Episode 3: Superintendent Todd Preston – Westshore Detachment 12 Sep 2025

Episode 4: Chief Dean Duthie – Saanich Police Department 19 Sep 2025

Episode 5: Chief Del Manak – Victoria Police Department 26 Sep 2025

Sound editing done by Todd Mason.

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