Latest news with #AlexOdintsov
CTV News
2 days ago
- CTV News
B.C. police force adopts flying ‘BolaWraps' for arresting fleeing suspects
The Abbotsford Police Department has become the first Canadian law enforcement agency to use the 'BolaWrap' to catch fleeing suspects. For the past 10 months, police in Abbotsford, B.C., have been field testing 'BolaWraps,' a tool to apprehend fleeing suspects by wrapping them in a tether. 'We were able to use it on the road successfully in approximately 12 to 15 deployments that resulted in no injuries to the subject, and ultimately aided in an apprehension or arrest of the subject,' said Const. Alex Odintsov, who is part of the Abbotsford Police Department's training section. Now the B.C. government has officially given them the green light, making Abbotsford the major Canadian city to put BolaWraps into daily use by its police department. Officers demonstrated how the devices work for the media on Thursday. 'The most effective distance for a rapid deployment is between 10 and 25 feet. The ideal is around 15 feet,' said Odintsov. 'So officers have to continually judge and reassess the distance depending on how the subject is moving and the officer is moving, and it just adds to the dynamic situation of the use of force.' Play Extended: B.C. police demonstrate 'BolaWraps' arrest tool Abbotsford police demonstrate their new BolaWraps, designed to constrain the limbs of fleeing suspects. Abbotsford police have purchased six BolaWrap devices, which are the size of a cellphone and fire much like a gun, at a cost of USD$1,500 each. The one-time use cartridges are an ongoing expense. 'Inside (the cartridge) you have two anchors that have barbed hooks designed to stick to clothing, and they're attached to a Kevlar tether. When it comes out, it does it at an angle, and it lets the tether spread and then bind to the clothing,' said Odintsov. 'It also has a noise aspect to it. It's loud on deployment, a sort of startling effect, and that gives the officers that reactionary time to close the distance and potentially go hands on,' he added. The wrap can be easily cut away with scissors once the suspect is in custody. Abbotsford police say it appears to be the safest less-lethal tool that an officer can use to detain a suspect. 'We're not saying that this tool is designed to replace anything,' Odintsov said. 'This is an additional piece of kit that officers can choose to equip, and hopefully, potentially in a team environment, help them solve these situations.'
CBC
2 days ago
- CBC
Abbotsford police first in Canada to roll out BolaWrap, a non-lethal restraint tool
The Abbotsford Police Department says it's the first in Canada to deploy a new non-lethal restraint tool called the BolaWrap — a device it says will reduce injuries during "emotionally charged or unpredictable situations." "[Like when] someone is actively walking away from the officers … and there's grounds to believe that they need to be stopped," said Const. Alex Odintsov with the training section of the police department. Resembling a large yellow remote, the handheld BolaWrap fires a lasso-like device that wraps around a person's limbs or torso, tethering them from a distance. Abbotsford police say it's designed to temporarily restrain someone without using pain to gain compliance. "It provides another option for officers when intervening with potentially volatile subjects, while at the same time decreasing the injury potential to the subject that is often associated with other tools," said Odintsov, who also led the approval process for the device in British Columbia. The department says it conducted a 10-month field trial and submitted deployment data to a provincial stakeholder panel, which ultimately cleared the device for use in B.C. as per the provincial policing standard. According to Odintsov, the tool was deployed more than a dozen times during the trial period, resulting in no injuries. "The result was there were no injuries to the subject, and ultimately it aided in apprehension or the arrest," he said. The constable says the device is also designed to startle rather than incapacitate, as it releases a loud bang when deployed. "It's loud on deployment, so that startling effect gives the officers that reactionary time to close the distance and potentially go hands-on." The device is manufactured by U.S.-based Wrap Technologies, which promotes it as "remote handcuffs." Odintsov says each unit costs around $2,000, with individual cassettes, which contain the tethered lasso, priced between $55 and $70. The Abbotsford Police Department says it has purchased six devices so far using its operating budget. Police say officers are trained to assess when the BolaWrap is appropriate, adding that the device is most effective when the tethered cords attach to clothing, such as pants. If used on someone in shorts or without clothing, the risk of skin penetration increases. "Officers are trained to assess what the subject is wearing, what is their behaviour, is injury potential going to be higher …and then make that determination," Odintsov said. BolaWrap's manufacturer claims the device has an 80 per cent success rate in the field, but the device has seen mixed results elsewhere. In Seattle, for example, the police department quietly stopped using the BolaWrap in 2023 after deploying it just three times in two years, according to some local news outlets, including the Seattle Times. CBC News has reached out to Seattle police to confirm the report and the reasons behind the discontinuation. Odintsov acknowledged the criticism but emphasized the importance of proper training and context. Odintsov acknowledged that no single tool fits every scenario, stating that BolaWraps are not meant to replace other tools like Tasers, batons or beanbag shotguns but rather to give officers more options. Abbotsford police say they will continue monitoring the effectiveness of the BolaWrap over the next year before deciding whether to invest in more units.
CTV News
2 days ago
- CTV News
B.C. police force becomes first in Canada to use flying ‘BolaWraps' for arrests
For the past 10 months, police in Abbotsford, B.C., have been field testing 'BolaWraps,' a tool to apprehend fleeing suspects by wrapping them in a tether. 'We were able to use it on the road successfully in approximately 12 to 15 deployments that resulted in no injuries to the subject, and ultimately aided in an apprehension or arrest of the subject,' said Const. Alex Odintsov, who is part of the Abbotsford Police Department's training section. Now the B.C. government has officially given them the green light, making Abbotsford the first police department in Canada to put BolaWraps into daily use. Officers demonstrated how the devices work for the media on Thursday. 'The most effective distance for a rapid deployment is between 10 and 25 feet. The ideal is around 15 feet,' said Odintsov. 'So officers have to continually judge and reassess the distance depending on how the subject is moving and the officer is moving, and it just adds to the dynamic situation of the use of force.' Abbotsford police have purchased six BolaWrap devices, which are the size of a cellphone and fire much like a gun, at a cost of USD$1,500 each. The one-time use cartridges are an ongoing expense. 'Inside (the cartridge) you have two anchors that have barbed hooks designed to stick to clothing, and they're attached to a Kevlar tether. When it comes out, it does it at an angle, and it lets the tether spread and then bind to the clothing,' said Odintsov. 'It also has a noise aspect to it. It's loud on deployment, a sort of startling effect, and that gives the officers that reactionary time to close the distance and potentially go hands on,' he added. The wrap can be easily cut away with scissors once the suspect is in custody. Abbotsford police say it appears to be the safest less-lethal tool that an officer can use to detain a suspect. 'We're not saying that this tool is designed to replace anything,' Odintsov said. 'This is an additional piece of kit that officers can choose to equip, and hopefully, potentially in a team environment, help them solve these situations.'
Global News
2 days ago
- Global News
Abbotsford police become 1st in B.C. to acquire ‘flying handcuffs' as non-lethal tool
Abbotsford, B.C., police have a new tool at their disposal that is a non-lethal option to stop people from a distance. The BolaWrap will be an option for officers who are responding to emotionally-charged or unpredictable situations. The BolaWrap uses a tethering mechanism to restrain individuals, launching what has been described as flying handcuffs — that is, a short cord with two anchors that wraps around the suspect without causing pain, according to police. Const. Alex Odintsov, with the training section of the Abbotsford Police Department, said they received the approval earlier this year after a 10-month application process. 'We dedicate a day to the training, the theoretical application of it, then we practice, then the scenario components of it,' he explained. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'Some situations were when people were actively walking away from the officers.' Story continues below advertisement Odintsov said they train officers to think about the best way someone needs to be stopped, based on observations and information. 'Deploying the BolaWrap device can have a restraint capacity to it. If deployed at an appropriate distance, it can bind the person's legs or arms but also has a noise aspect to it,' he added. 1:25 Abbotsford Police campaign targets impaired driving The Abbotsford police have six BolaWraps, at a cost of about U.S. $1,500 each, which came from their policing budget. 'We supported Const. Odintsov's initial proposal because we recognized its potential to provide an additional force option that could temporarily limit physical movement and reduce the risk of harm to individuals in crisis,' Deputy Chief Const. Jason Burrows with the Abbotsford Police Department said. 'With the tool now approved, we consider it a valuable addition to the range of options available to our members, to be used when appropriate. We plan to implement this tool over the next year and will evaluate its effectiveness based on the data collected before deciding on further investment.' Story continues below advertisement Odintsov said, to their knowledge, they are the first police department in the province to obtain and use this tool.
