A local police program that monitors, tracks, and arrests people who violate their bail conditions saw arrest volumes double in 2025.
The Offender Management Unit, launched on March 11, 2024, is a partnership between the Windsor Police Service and the LaSalle Police Service and is focused on monitoring high-risk individuals under house arrest, curfews, or electronic monitoring in Windsor, Amherstburg, and LaSalle.
In 2025, the unit made 118 arrests involving wanted individuals and bail-related warrants-more than double last year's total of 56 arrests.
The unit also completed 312 bail compliance checks and 21,524 GPS monitoring checks.
Constable Steve Rettig with the Windsor Police Bail Compliance Unit, which serves under the umbrella of the Offender Management Unit, says part of their role is also to keep people 'on track' while on bail and provide them with avenues to succeed, but there is a percentage of people who continue to live their lifestyle and have full disregard for what they promised to stay out of jail while awaiting trial.
Rettig says these people agreed to conditions in order to stay out of jail, and it's their job to hold them accountable.
"There are some people we've met with, and we haven't had to deal with them since; they follow their conditions and do what they say they're going to do," he says. "Unfortunately, there's a percentage of people on bail that just continue to live their lifestyle and just have full disregard for what they promised."
Rettig says these dedicated units are allowing police to look into things they weren't able to before, which has come as a surprise to some people out on bail.
"They're absolutely shocked. They didn't know we existed. They had never experienced a door knock to check up on their curfew, some of them. So complete shock," he says.The unit is staffed by three full-time officers, one part-time officer, and a civilian crime analyst.
Rettig says he thinks this type of unit is something that will grow across the province because there is a lot of value in it.
"You gain a lot of face-to-face interaction with the people in your city, the offenders of your city. You also gain a lot of intelligence that can further lead to other policing avenues and strategies to help provide more safety for the city," he says.
A total of 98 bail packages were also prepared in 2025, providing courts with detailed information about an individual's history and risk to help guide bail decisions, set appropriate conditions, and support public safety.
The Offender Management Unit is supported through a $2,276,437 grant from the Government of Ontario as part of the provincial government's $112 million investment to strengthen Ontario's bail system and ensure high-risk and repeat violent offenders comply with their bail conditions.
To report an individual who is not complying with their release conditions, please contact Windsor Police at 519-255-6700.
You can also contact Crime Stoppers anonymously at 519-258-8477 (TIPS) or online at http://catchcrooks.com.