CALGARY — Alberta's government has named its own provincial police force and announced its first chief.
Premier Danielle Smith says former deputy Calgary police chief Sat Parhar has been tapped to lead the new force, which the province will call the Alberta Sheriffs Police Service.
Parhar retired in 2019 after more than two decades with the Calgary Police Service in a variety of roles.
Smith says the new service isn't meant to replace the RCMP entirely, though municipalities will have the option to contract the new service for its local policing needs instead of the Mounties.
As the force's first chief, Parhar will lead more than 600 existing provincial sheriffs, and he says his first order of business will be to hire an executive team and develop recruitment standards.
Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis says the new police force will be more capable to meet the needs of rural communities, citing slow response times and staffing issues for the RCMP in Alberta's smaller municipalities.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 2, 2025.
The Canadian Press
