West Shore RCMP Detachment Mayor’s Report for December 2015

Mayor’s Report for the Month of December 2015

This report is intended as a quick update, with a more detailed report to be provided quarterly. The West Shore RCMP Detachment received 1502 calls for service in December. During this same period in 2014 there were 1411 total calls for service in December. Distribution of these calls is itemized for your reference below:

Calls for Service Statistics December 2014/2015

Annual Performance Plan Update (APP):

The past three months have been very challenging for the West Shore Detachment due to injuries, illness and people off with long term medical issues. As a result of higher than usual vacancies, we have had to make some significant adjustments to ensure that core policing remained a priority and that we provided sufficient coverage ensuring public and officer safety. Some of the key vacancies at the detachment include: Inspector CHOMYN remains off duty for medical reasons and has been off since June of 2015. There is no return to work date for him and there are no plans at present to replace him. The Major Crime Commander position has been vacant since July, 2015. His replacement is coming from Prince George. Unfortunately he has not been able to sell his house. As a result, his arrival date is still unknown. The municipal traffic unit has been disbanded as a result of shortages on the watches. As well, a vacancy on the Street Crime Unit will not be filled for the foreseeable future. We have not been able to staff a vacant position on the Community Policing section as well due to shortages on the general duty watches. Our First Nation Constable was injured and he is expected to be off work for at least a year as he awaits surgery. The one bright spot at the detachment remains the Crime Reduction Unit. It has only been in operation since September 2015 and continues to have great success. In the past 4 months, they have made over 25 arrests; over 20 of those were prolific offenders. The direct result has been a reduction in property offences.

Annual Performance Plan INFO:

The life of the Annual Performance Plan (APP) runs from April 1st to March 31st. The third quarter just finished on December 31st. The five priorities for this year are: reduce the impact of organized crime; contribute to safe roads; enhance police community relations; contribute to safer Aboriginal communities and reduction of property offences.

Reduce the impact of Organized Crime:

Police continue to do bar walks at local liquor establishments. As well, we conduct routine street checks on people found wandering the streets at night. Our stats are down for this past quarter partially due to increase calls for service and manpower issues.

Contribute to Safe Roads:

Our priorities are to conduct more traffic enforcement initiatives and to reduce injury crashes by 5%. We have not been able to meet our goals. Injury crashes are up 10% over the same time period last year. This is largely due to the fact that we have had to re-deploy our municipal traffic members to the general duty watches.

Enhance Police Community Relations:

Even with a reduced community policing section, we have actually exceeded the number of special events that we have attended or participated in this past year.

Contribute to Safer and Healthier Aboriginal Communities:

Our First nation Constable was very much involved in the two communities prior to injuring himself. He has already exceeded the number of cultural events that he originally planned on attending.

Reduction of Property Offences:

For the third quarter of this plan, property offences were down 27%. We are meeting our goal of reducing property offences by 5%. Our Crime Reduction Unit has had a significant impact on property crime in the short time that they have been in existence.

Some files of note for the month of December, as per Media releases from the West Shore RCMP newsroom:

On December 9th, 2015, at around 5:20 pm, West Shore RCMP's Crime Reduction Unit arrested a 32 year old Langford man on Matson Rd in Langford, B.C.

The suspect, was well-known to police and known to have an outstanding warrant for his arrest. He was spotted by a Langford Bylaw officer who relayed the information to police. Police located the suspect immediately and subsequently arrested him.

After a struggle, the suspect escaped custody and was arrested after a short foot pursuit. A bystander offered assistance and stood by while the suspect was taken into custody.

In addition to the charges stemming from his arrest warrant, he is now facing additional charges relating to Breach of Recognizance, Escape Lawful Custody, Resist Arrest and Possession of a Controlled Substance.

West Shore RCMP made two arrests following an arson at a condo building situated in the 700 block of Hockley Ave in Langford.

Just after 6:30 pm on December 12, 2015, West Shore RCMP assisted Langford Fire with a suspicious fire in a lower stairwell of a 29-unit apartment building, which appeared to be deliberately set with a combustible. The damage was contained to the stairwell.

60 tenants were evacuated without incident and sheltered at the Langford Legion before being allowed back in later that evening.

One youth suspect was arrested on December 14 after he was spotted by a construction worker in the area and the second youth suspect was arrested on December 16 without incident.

Both youth, aged 16 and 17 years old can't be named as their identities are protected under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. They were both since released on a Promise to Appear in court on February 25, 2016.

The West Shore RCMP Major Crime Unit, including an arson investigator and the RCMP Forensic Identification Service are working closely with the Langford Fire Department into this incident, states Cst. Alex Bérubé, spokesperson for the West Shore RCMP Detachment. Luckily, nobody was injured and the damage was limited to the stairwell.

The Register your Bicycle with West Shore RCMP Program is now available to all area residents.

West Shore RCMP Detachment is pleased to offer the opportunity for residents in our communities to register their bicycles with us. In doing so, you will provide a means to track down any lost/stolen bicycles from the communities in the West Shore.

Why Register my bicycle?

Bicycles are stolen by opportunity seeking thieves. Bicycles are a quick, silent and effective way for prolific offenders to move around an area to commit crimes. Unlike a motor vehicle, there is no license plate which may identify the owner of a bicycle.

In August 2015, West Shore RCMP found a cache of approximately 40 bicycles that were deemed to be stolen. Out of those 40 bikes, only 3 were returned to their rightful owner by retracing their serial numbers, says Cst. Alex Bérubé, spokesperson of the West Shore RCMP.

Not only will registration decals act as a deterrent for bicycle thieves, they provide police with crucial information to effectively investigate cases of found or stolen bicycles.

For your information, please find below the guard room statistics for the month of December

Guard Room Stats December 2015

MONTH

YEAR TO DATE

Sincerely,

S/Sgt Stephen Wright Acting/Officer in Charge West Shore RCMP Detachment