According to Columbia Valley RCMP, the region has seen an increase in property crime in the last six months, and police are doing what they can to combat it.
Cpl. Louis-Philippe Gendron-Fafard said the detachment has been investigating a number of thefts from garages, sheds and a few break and enters of local businesses.
“Our officers are hard at work trying to identify our main culprits from the area that would be responsible for these things,” said Gendron-Fafard. “There are a handful of individuals that are responsible for these thefts.”
Gendron-Fafard said police have been working to collect evidence to pin down and charge who is behind the crimes.
“We have, for example, one offender who has about 25 criminal charges for property crime offences, and some personal offences.”
You can help reduce crime as well, by locking up valuables and removing items such as keys, wallets and garage door openers from your vehicle.
“We’ve noticed culprits often using a garage door opener to enter a garage late at night,” said Gendron-Fafard. “If there is anything suspicious that you notice late at night, call the RCMP when it happens rather than the morning after. This way we can track down these individuals as these thefts are happening.”
According to Gendron-Fafard, the rise in thefts can be pinned to a number of issues.
“For some of these individuals, there is a substance abuse issue. We are offering some assistance for that matter. For other individuals, they think it’s a quick and easy way to get money. They will turn around and sell things on Facebook marketplace, on Kijiji or go to a pawnshop,” explained Gendron-Fafard. “If possible, please record your serial numbers. We’ve had a string of generators being stolen over the last few months, and we’ve noticed people are recording the serial number on their generators which has been very helpful when arresting the individuals responsible.”
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