Drugs and Organized Crime Awareness Service (DOCAS)

In 2005, the Federal and International Operations Directorate, both Drug Branch and Organized Crime Branch, aligned their awareness services forming the Drugs and Organized Crime Awareness Service (DOCAS).

Mission Statement

The RCMP Drugs & Organized Crime Awareness Service (DOCAS) is committed through partnerships in making communities safer and healthier by providing all Canadians with the tools needed to meaningfully reduce substance use/abuse and organized crime related problems.

DOCAS is committed by:

• Engaging communities by promoting the benefits of healthy lifestyle choices in providing Canadians with the skills and information needed to make educated and informed decisions.
• Providing leadership through the coordination of drug awareness and prevention programs/initiatives that support supply and demand reduction.
• Improving Canadians’ understanding of the reach and influence of organized crime and its impacts on individuals and society as a whole.
• Mobilizing the Canadian public to become a significant partner of Canadian law enforcement to effectively combat and reduce the influence of organized crime in Canada.

Awareness: Drugs and Organized Crime

You might think that as a law-abiding citizen, drugs and organized crime have no effect on your life. But, sadly, they do; drugs and organized crime affect individuals both directly and indirectly in the communities we serve, every single day.

Drug abuse of any kind is a serious health and social problem harming individuals, relationships and families, often irreparably. It’s estimated to cost the Canadian economy billions of dollars each year in lost productivity, law enforcement and health care costs. The criminality and violence that surrounds illicit drug use poses a threat to the safety of our communities.

Drugs fuel organized crime, which is defined is any group of three or more people engaged in criminal activity where the primary motive is profit.While many still imagine that organized crime pertains only to things like motorcycle gangs and the mafia, it can be found in nearly every crime imaginable, including counterfeiting, cigarette smuggling, human trafficking, credit and bank card fraud, and the exploitation of children on the internet, to name but a few. The public pays for these crimes through increased taxes and higher prices on essential goods and services, and through a diminished sense of safety and security in their homes and communities, (and, of course, some pay directly as victims of crime).

What we do

The RCMP believes in an approach that includes prevention and awareness. Through this, we can help to stop drug use before it starts; protect individuals from becoming victims of crime; and to teach the public how to recognize (and report) crime themselves.

With representatives across Canada, DOCAS works collectively to create awareness materials and programs aimed at different segments of the population in different geographical areas. DOCAS also works in partnership with all levels of government, non-governmental agencies, other police agencies, private organizations and other community groups to provide pro-active initiatives in our communities.

How can I help?

• Be informed. Protect yourself by learning about the dangers of illicit drugs and how to avoid becoming a victim of organized crime.
• Be alert. You can play an important role in keeping your community safe by sharing any information on illicit activity with law enforcement agencies.
• Be involved. DOCAS relies on volunteers and public assistance to help deliver some of their programs. For more information, contact your local RCMP detachment.