More than 80 per cent of Canadians live in cities, and it鈥檚 in these urban areas that RCMP and city police forces are tasked with protecting the public, detecting and preventing crime, and maintaining law and order.

But away from the cities, crime takes on a different light 鈥� and for that, you need a different type of officer.

Dressed in boots, blue jeans, a button-up and sometimes a cowboy hat, RCMP Cpl. Cory Lepine of the Provincial Livestock Section doesn鈥檛 stand out quite like Mounties in their protective vests and uniforms.

Lepine, dubbed a 鈥渃owboy cop鈥� by some, is among the last of his kind, serving as a necessary bridge between the law and those who make a living off the land. In fact, such criminal oversight is so important to those within the livestock industry that when the role became vacant in 2015, it was their pleas that revitalized the role.

He is B.C.鈥檚 only cowboy cop

When the RCMP was first established in the late 1800s, every police officer was a 鈥榗owboy cop.鈥� Livestock, introduced in the province because of the gold rush, was among the largest commodities in the country.

More commonly known as livestock investigators, cow cops combat complicated crimes and issues pertaining to the livestock industry; from stolen or poached cattle to roadkill, land disputes, fraud investigations, and even dogs chasing a neighbour鈥檚 cattle.

At one time, there were five livestock members in the province 鈥� a sergeant, a corporal, and three constables 鈥� spread throughout the southern half of the province.

From 1900 to 1970, 90 per cent of B.C.鈥檚 cattle herd was located from Williams Lake south to the U.S. border. Today, this has flipped, putting the majority of cattle ranches north of Williams Lake and into the Caribou.

Price of land is largely responsible for the shift.

Nevertheless, there鈥檚 still a need for enforcement in southern B.C. In the Okanagan, there are several large cattle operations; Douglas Lake Cattle Company, Coldstream Ranch, plus several others in the Kamloops area. In the Kootenays, near Cranbrook, are several large operations as well.

Today, there are just three cow cops in Canada 鈥� Lepine in B.C., and two in Alberta.

Story continues below.

Industry pleas for a cow cop

When B.C.鈥檚 previous livestock officer, Cpl. Ralph Overby, left in 2015, the position sat vacant for almost three years. It wasn鈥檛 until cattle ranchers lobbied the provincial government and the RCMP, that the position was brought back.

While a general duty RCMP officer may view a calf killed by a vehicle as roadkill, Lepine sees it as property damage, 鈥渏ust like someone driving through the front door of your house. There鈥檚 got to be consequences.鈥�

Based in Kamloops, Lepine liaises between the livestock industry and the RCMP. Daily, he works closely with the BC Cattleman鈥檚 Association and Ownership Identification Inc.

Some days, Lepine joins property owners in fencing their property to keep free-roam cattle out. Other days, he鈥檚 a mediator in land disputes. Sometimes, he鈥檚 a voice of wisdom for other RCMP members during emergency situations such as a cattle liner crash. He also looks after B.C.鈥檚 horse industry, of which there are over 25,000 registered members.

Without a cowboy cop, livestock or ranch owners faced with an issue have limited options for action. Most of the time, they either call one of 36 brand inspectors with Ownership Identification Inc. (OII) or the BC Cattleman鈥檚 Association 鈥� neither of which has the power to enforce on a criminal level.

OII is B.C.鈥檚 brand registration and inspection program, which protect livestock owners against the loss of animals by theft, straying or misappropriation.

鈥淐onsequently, (they) call the local (RCMP) detachment, and unfortunately, the answer they鈥檙e receiving is, we don鈥檛 know anything about livestock. As a resident鈥� I don鈥檛 buy that as an answer. But that鈥檚 where Cory鈥檚 role comes in,鈥� said Bob Miller, general manager of OII.

Lepine tackles an annual average of 150 cases, not including those he鈥檚 called out to that are either non-issues or resolved easily. He estimates there are between 200 to 300 situations a year that he never hears about.

鈥淧eople are shocked that there鈥檚 [still] cattle theft, and I always tell them 鈥� cattle are a commodity. Beef鈥檚 a commodity. It鈥檚 no different than televisions or radios. If there鈥檚 a market to resell it, they鈥檙e going to do it,鈥� said Lepine.

With beef priced at about $8/lb, a cow can easily be worth $2,000.

Story continues below.

A diverse history with the RCMP

Prior to his reinstatement as B.C.鈥檚 livestock investigator in 2017, Lepine worked 15 years in uniform as a frontline officer, including four years as a watch commander in West Kelowna. He also spent many of these years working in downtown Kelowna.

鈥淚 was kind of burnt out, I was kind of done with policing 鈥� people call you for help and they criticize what you do when you get there 鈥� which beats on you.鈥�

In April 2019, Lepine was tasked with a difficult case. Two people 鈥� apparently a man and a woman 鈥� were recorded trespassing on the Eagle Acres Dairy farm in Langley, where they killed a five-day-old calf with a crossbow. After stabbing it multiple times, they dragged it out of the barn, put the animal in the trunk of their car and left.

After extensive research, Lepine hypothesized the killing may have been motivated by the use of ancient Asian medicine. Identification of the individuals was not possible, and the case remains outstanding.

Numerous times, Lepine has also spearheaded investigations into animals in Fort St. John being killed, and their genitalia harvested.

The future of cow cops

Lepine was raised in a city, but after growing up in Kelowna, he fell in love with ranch life. He now owns a ranch and cattle of his own, and wishes more youth of today had the opportunity to spend time on a farm.

鈥淪ometimes it鈥檚 good to connect with your roots. And by that I mean, people always look down on these small towns, but life鈥檚 pretty simple 鈥� Slow down and enjoy (getting) back to your roots a little bit. It saved my career in the RCMP.鈥�

Story continues below.

Lepine doesn鈥檛 see his department growing in the future, with with the increasing popularity of plant-based meals, the long-term future of the livestock industry is uncertain.

Ideally, he鈥檇 like one more colleague alongside him. Tasked with covering the entire province, there are areas he rarely goes to, such as Vancouver Island, despite the significant number of dairy and beef farms on the coast.

Lepine鈥檚 role as a livestock investigator is funded by the RCMP; however, this isn鈥檛 the case everywhere. In Alberta, the industry funds a portion.

A proposal by the OII and BC Cattleman鈥檚 Association to the BC RCMP to introduce this method of funding fell on deaf ears, according to Miller.

Despite these challenges, Miller stressed they鈥檙e fortunate to have their cow cop. And they鈥檒l need him, 鈥渁s long as there鈥檚 livestock in the province.鈥�

Do you have something to add to this story, or something else we should report on? Email: phil.mclachlan@kelownacapnews.com

Like us on and follow us on .