Manitoba Government Expands Electronic Monitoring Program to Help Keep Communities Safe
Additional 100 Ankle Monitors to Track More Offenders Will Help Enhance Public Safety Across the Province: Wiebe
Media Release - July 17, 2025
The Manitoba government is expanding its electronic monitoring program with an additional investment of $1.2 million this year to add up to 100 more ankle monitors, as required to track offenders released on bail, Justice Minister Matt Wiebe announced here today.
“Our government is taking important steps to make communities safer by putting another part of our public safety strategy into action,” said Wiebe. “We’re cracking down on repeat offenders by expanding the electronic monitoring program and doubling the amount of ankle monitors to help keep people safe. We’ve heard from people across the province about the impact crime has had in their communities and they want repeat offenders held accountable to the release conditions. That’s why we took action to bring back this important program that was initially cut by the previous government. After a successful start to this program last summer, we are responding to the demand for more ankle monitors and devices to monitor those released on bail, ensuring the safety and well-being of Manitobans.”
The increased investment brings the total commitment to $2.7 million this year and will add up to an additional 100 ankle monitors as needed for a total of 200 devices. The program was reinstated in August 2024 to supervise offenders on community-based sentences and release orders to ensure they comply with court-imposed conditions. Electronic devices and monitoring services with a global positioning system tracking allow law enforcement to be notified of an offender’s location in real time and issue alerts if they enter a prohibited area. As of July 10, the program recorded a total of 321 participants with all 100 devices currently in use to monitor compliance, added the minister.
“The expansion of the electronic monitoring program is a meaningful step forward to enhancing public safety in Brandon,” said Mayor Jeff Fawcett, City of Brandon. “This technology gives our police service a stronger ability to monitor individuals on bail, respond swiftly to violations, and prevent further criminal activity – all of which enhances public safety. This initiative reflects a shared commitment between the Manitoba government and the City of Brandon to protect our community and ensure Brandon remains a safe place to live and do business.”
The program first started in Winnipeg last August and expanded in November to include Brandon, Souris, Portage la Prairie, Steinbach, Dauphin, Selkirk and Winkler. It also implemented alerts for victims of intimate partner violence. More devices will allow the program to expand to communities in northern Manitoba, noted Wiebe.
The program plans to introduce new curfew monitoring software that uses secure video conferencing and biometric identification to monitor offenders who do not require a traditional ankle bracelet. This approach will lessen the burden on police officers completing in-person curfew checks and allow them to focus on responding to emergency situations. Commissionaires Manitoba is contracted to oversee the program, the minister noted.
“I am very pleased that the electronic ankle bracelet monitoring program is being expanded in Brandon and across the province,” said Chief Tyler Bates, Brandon Police Service. “With this expansion, the Manitoba government has provided the Brandon Police Service with another tool to enhance community safety by targeting repeat offenders. With ankle bracelet monitoring being part of stricter bail conditions ordered by the courts, the police can take faster and more proactive action when someone isn’t following their release terms – before things escalate. This $1.2 million investment made to expand the bail monitoring program demonstrates the Manitoba government’s ongoing commitment to public safety and the partnership between Manitoba Justice and law enforcement including the Brandon Police Service.”
This initiative builds on previous investments that the Manitoba government has made in Brandon and the Westman region over the past year, noted the minister. Previous investments include:
- $100,000 grant to the City of Brandon to support downtown safety;
- $85,000 grant to combat retail theft in Brandon;
- supporting public safety through $270,000 from the Criminal Property Forfeiture fund for the Brandon Police Service;
- 28 per cent increase to the City of Brandon’s Urban Policing Grant, which will be supported by an additional 2 per cent escalator grant in 2025-26;
- $15,000 in funding from the Manitoba Criminal Intelligence Centre for project involving law enforcement in multiple regions; and
- 50 per cent increase to Community Mobilization Westman to support crime prevention.
The Manitoba government’s Safer Neighbourhoods, Safer Downtowns Public Safety Strategy is available at https://gov.mb.ca/justice/pubs/publicsafety_strategy.pdf.