Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams (ALERT) was established by the Alberta government in 2006. The organization, which operates at arms-length from the province, brings together Alberta's most sophisticated law enforcement resources to combat serious and organized crime.

Close to 400 municipal police, RCMP members, and sheriffs work together in an integrated environment in regions throughout the province. Highly skilled police teams investigate things like drug trafficking, child exploitation, gang violence and organized crime to create safer communities for all Albertans.

The model is a first for Canada--no other province has one, central body for the strategic oversight and governance of provincial integrated policing.

Teams fall under three operational categories -- intelligence, enforcement and support services -- and include:

• Criminal Intelligence Service Alberta (CISA) and regional intelligence teamsthat collect and share intelligence information for enforcement action with police around the province;
• Combined Forces Special Enforcement Units (CFSEU) that specialize in organized crime, marihuana, drug and gang investigations;
• Integrated Child Exploitation (ICE)teams that target and apprehend those individuals who prey on our children through the Internet;
• Integrated Threat and Risk Assessment Centre (I-TRAC) that assesses threats and develops risk reduction plans for domestic violence and stalking cases in Alberta;
• Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods (SCAN) teams that target and shut down properties that are regularly used for illegal activities related to drugs, gangs, prostitution and child exploitation;
• Fugitive Apprehension Sheriffs Support Teams (FASST) that tracks, investigates, and arrests criminals who are wanted on outstanding warrants in Alberta;
• Sheriffs Investigative Surveillance Unit (SISU) that provides surveillance assistance to Alberta law enforcement agencies; and
• Alberta Specialized Law Enforcement Training (ASLET) that provides specialized training to enhance the ability of police to detect, disrupt, and dismantle serious and organized crime in Alberta.