(file photo/paNOW Staff)

By Tyler Marr

THE NUMBERS DON'T LIE

Total calls down, property crime up in Battleford: RCMP

Jul 17, 2019 | 10:40 AM

While the overall number of calls for service in Battleford has declined, property crimes and criminal code offences are up, according to an RCMP report.

Insp. Tom Beck provided an update on crime in the second quarter of 2019 to town lawmakers.

Beck said the detachment is looking at various initiatives and crime reduction strategies to reduce call numbers in the city and town.

Currently, he said the Police and Crisis Team (PACT) is helping people deal with mental health and addictions crisis issues. During the second quarter, the PACT was sent to 90 calls and saved around 180 hours of officers time that would have been spent waiting around.

Other specialized units, he said, have started to target the top two per cent of chronic offenders.

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To date, there have been 549 calls for service in Battleford, down from 589 over the same period in 2018.

Property crimes have jumped from 68 in the second quarter of 2018 to 84 between April and June 2019. To date, the numbers show 136 property crimes compared to 116 in 2018.

The number of criminal code offences crept up marginally over the last three months to 31 from 27. To date, 58 have been recorded as opposed to 47 in 2018.

However, the number of drug offences plummeted significantly. There were none recorded in Battleford in the second quarter compared to seven over the same period in 2018. To date, just two have occurred, in contrast to 10 in the first half of 2018.

The number of provincial traffic offences and impaired drivers caught is down by nearly half. To date, only 35 traffic crimes have been tallied, as opposed to 63 over the same time in 2018. Only nine impaired drivers have been caught to date, nearly half the 17 in 2018.

Asked on this, Beck did not shy away from chalking the data up to a lack of patrols, believing “there are just as many people speeding or running stop signs as there was last year.”

The officer was pressured on calls for greater visibility, which is a common request, he said.

“Having more officers patrolling and being on the street, it is something I am aware of and having members getting out and making sure we have that presence on the street,” he said. “In my time here, I have had that conversation and we will carry on working on it.”

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tyler.marr@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @JournoMarr