British Columbia:Police have Con Air Up and Running

VANCOUVER - Some Vancouver accused criminals might soon be flying home -- on points.

Vancouver Board of Trade directors have kicked in more than a million air mile points to boost a police plan to ship accused criminals to their home provinces to face justice.

That sounds like a lot -- on the face of it, it could pay for 40 economy seats out of Vancouver at 25,000 air mile points each.

But a cross-country flight can cost up to 80,000 points, and each wanted suspect has to be accompanied by two police officers, so the board of trade's 1.03 million points might send only four suspects home.

However, the board said today it is getting calls from members of the public who want to donate their air mile points, as well as from Victoria's board of trade and from other police forces that may want to join the program.

"We believe it can be done but we're still investigating," Bernie Magnan, the board's assistant managing director, said. "One million points equals 40 people. That would be quite something."

The police initiated program, believed to be the first of its kind, could either send accused criminals wanted on so-called "non-returnable" warrants to their home provinces, or convince them to agree to have their out-of-province charges transferred here and plead guilty.

At the moment, a con who is wanted on a warrant in Ontario or Newfoundland can escape prosecution in Vancouver because other provinces won't pay to fly them home, and so, many escape justice.

It costs about $2,500 in cash to send a criminal -- escorted by two officers -- back to his home province to be tried, Const. Tim Fanning said.

"There's certainly been a high interest from the public on this and rightly so," Fanning said of the program. "Nobody should be able to flee prosecution simply by going 100 kilometres outside a city or leaving a province.

"We're going to do what we can to make this work."

Police still have to iron out details with air miles programs to confirm they will allow the transfer of prisoners on air points, but are optimistic the program will go ahead.

The program was launched this week by Vancouver police Chief Jim Chu in an effort to round up an estimated 2,500 people who are living in Vancouver and are wanted elsewhere. This includes Adam Croft, who was wanted on a raft of charges in Ontario including assault, threatening bodily harm, drug possession, obstructing a police officer and assault causing bodily harm in relation to incidents from January to August 2002.

While in Vancouver, he has been charged with an additional 39 counts of theft, fraud, assault and drug charges.

Fanning said the campaign isn't necessarily about ridding Vancouver of non-returnable criminals, but more about ensuring they go before a judge. The police focus is on people who have committed violent and serious crimes.

It's not know how many Vancouver criminals are living in other provinces.

"It's about getting people brought to justice," Fanning said. "We're hoping it becomes a national program. Every police officers across the country has run across the same frustration.

"The ultimate goal is that these people are going to say, 'I can't flee.'"

ksinoski@png.canwest.com