Thunder Bay police have introduced a new ballistics lab to expedite the processing of firearms-related evidence. Housed in a container at the Thunder Bay police headquarters on Balmoral Street, the lab was revealed on Wednesday.
According to Ryan Doucette, the forensic identification sergeant at Thunder Bay police, the lab enables the comparison of cases and projectiles from different shooting scenes or firearms seized by the police. Equipped with a water tank for firing weapons and recovering bullets and casings, the lab streamlines the process by sending the collected evidence to the Centre of Forensic Sciences in Toronto for analysis and comparison with evidence from other shooting scenes.
Previously, sending firearms for test firing at the Centre of Forensic Sciences resulted in significant delays of weeks or months. However, with the new lab in Thunder Bay, test firings can be conducted locally, providing results within days.
The Thunder Bay-based company, Stongbox, constructed the lab with funding from Ontario’s Community Safety and Policing grant. Deputy police chief Jeremy Pearson emphasized the lab’s role in enhancing the efficiency of firearms investigations, reducing processing times, and allowing the police to focus on subsequent incidents promptly.
Pearson highlighted the rise in firearms-related incidents in Thunder Bay over recent years, emphasizing the importance of processing evidence swiftly to support ongoing investigations and address potential connections to crimes in other parts of the province.