(Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW staff)

By Angela Brown

First quarter report

Town sees overall increase in calls for service in latest RCMP report

Apr 20, 2021 | 8:53 AM

The Town of Battleford has seen an overall 21 per cent increase in calls for service from January to March in 2021, compared to the same time last year, based on the latest RCMP report.

The town received 307 calls for the period in 2021 versus 254 for the same time in 2020.

Staff Sergeant Jason Teniuk, acting Detachment Commander for the Battlefords RCMP, presented the findings in his quarterly report at Monday night’s council meeting.

Some categories that have seen an increase include thefts and assaults reported. Thefts were up 22 per cent, with 28 reports compared to 23 last year. Assaults increased by 91 per cent, with 21 reported for the period in 2021 versus 11 last year for the same time.

Categories that have experienced an increase include property offences at 27 per cent. Crimes against persons were also up.

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Vehicle thefts increased, with 11 reports compared to four for the period last year. However, break and enters to residences were down, with two reports versus eight for the same period in 2020.

Impaired driving reports came in at three for the current period compared to one for the same time in 2020.

The total overall calls for service in Battleford for the period represented only five per cent of the detachment’s calls.

Teniuk said Non Offence Code calls, such as Mental Health Act issues, continue to take up a significant amount of police time.

In giving his update, Teniuk reported he has now taken on the role of Acting Detachment Commander as Inspector Tom Beck is in the process of transferring to a new posting.

The First Nations Community Policing Unit was started at the end of January for the Battlefords Detachment. The unit complements the three Community Tripartite Agreement (CTA) members assigned to each of the watches.

Community Tripartite Agreements (CTAs) are contracts between First Nation communities, and provincial and federal governments to provide additional police officers to communities.

Teniuk said the local First Nations Community Policing Unit is being staffed with provincial resources, and all efforts are being made to staff it with Indigenous members.

The Police and Crisis Team (PACT) that includes mental health professionals continues to help with efficiencies for the detachment. It assisted on 50 calls in the first quarter for the Battlefords area, saving officers 200 hours waiting in the emergency room for individuals’ assessments to be completed. Teniuk reported it also provided follow up work on about 37 cases to prevent mental health crises, before officers became involved, when responding to incidents.

angela.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsNOW