The Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Newfoundland and Labrador is now under the leadership of Assistant Commissioner Ches W. Parsons, Commanding Officer, who hails from the community of Curling on the west coast of the province. The appointment took effect on October 9, 2018.
"My thirty-one years with the RCMP has brought me to many areas of Canada and beyond but coming home to Newfoundland and Labrador as Commanding Officer is the proudest moment of my career," said Assistant Commissioner Parsons. "My number one priority is to ensure the RCMP continues to provide quality policing services to the residents and communities of our province. What is clearly evident to me as I settle in is that our police officers and employees share that priority, and we have world-class policing expertise right here in Newfoundland and Labrador. It's good to be home!"
The Assistant Commissioner's 31-year career with the RCMP has led him to Alberta, the Northwest Territories, Ontario, and internationally on deployments into Europe, Africa, the Middle East and the Far East. He has worked extensively with diverse populations, serving Canadians in a variety of capacities. He worked for many years with First Nations and Métis communities in Alberta and the Northwest Territories. His operational policing roles have included Serious and Organized Crime, National Security, Major Crimes and Emergency Response. He worked in the field of national security for the past 17 years, most recently as the Director General of Federal Policing National Security. See below for the complete biography.
About RCMP NL
Through an agreement between Canada and the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, RCMP NL provides provincial and Indigenous policing services, with 44 detachments and additional specialized units, covering a service area of 82 per cent of the province's landmass and including over 260 towns, 3 First Nations Reserves, 190 unincorporated communities and many populated areas between towns and communities. In addition, the RCMP provides federal policing resources to address priorities including national security, organized crime and drug enforcement throughout the entire province.
Biography: Assistant Commissioner Ches W. Parsons
Assistant Commissioner Ches W. Parsons became the 19th Commanding Officer of RCMP Newfoundland and Labrador in October, 2018. This posting brings him back home to Newfoundland and Labrador. He grew up in the community of Curling on the west coast. He graduated from Herdman Collegiate in Corner Brook and then from Memorial University with a Bachelor of Commerce degree prior to attending the RCMP Academy at Depot in Regina, Saskatchewan.
His 31-year career with the RCMP has brought him to Alberta, the Northwest Territories, Ontario, and internationally on deployments into Europe, Africa, the Middle East and the Far East. He has worked extensively with diverse populations, serving Canadians in a variety of capacities. He worked for many years with First Nations and Métis communities in Alberta and the Northwest Territories. Assistant Commissioner Parsons' operational policing roles have included Serious and Organized Crime, National Security, and Major Crimes. He was also a member and Team Commander of the Emergency Response Team in Yellowknife for some ten years. He has worked in the field of national security for the past 17 years, most recently as the Director General of Federal Policing National Security.
Assistant Commissioner Parsons is a life-long volunteer. He has been active in community service in all his postings and he is a proud member of the Royal Canadian Legion.
His appointment to lead the RCMP in Newfoundland and Labrador is the high water mark of his distinguished career.