Athabasca County has seen a decrease in crime this summer from last year, according to Athabasca and Boyle RCMP.
Staff Sgt. Brian Nicholl of the Athabasca RCMP detachment and Cpl. Ray Tardif of the Boyle detachment reported their station’s summer activity to Athabasca County council Aug. 31.
Nicholl read a series of statistics that showed the numbers of proven files from May to the end of July in 2016 and 2017. The numbers indicated a decrease in break and enters, property crimes, assaults and suspicious persons reports in 2017.
“People that were committing a lot of our crime got put in jail last year,” he said in an interview. “There’s also been a lot of public awareness in the last year … We’ve got a lot more of our community watching out for each other. We’ve got the Citizens On Patrol. The police themselves have been more visible.”
Nicholl said crime tends to be cyclical. Although a lot of criminals went to jail last year, crime will likely go up again when they are released.
“It’s not to say that every person who goes to jail comes back and commits crime again,” he said. “I don’t mean that at all. It’s just some of these people, that’s what they do.”
Nicholl’s numbers indicated a rise in motor vehicle theft, false 911 calls and drug offences, which went from two in 2016 to four in 2017.
“Generally, when the other files drop, we’re able to do more proactive work in drug possession charges,” said Nicholl. “So we generally like to see those ones increase when the other stuff falls.”
Cpl. Tardif from Boyle reported a five-year low in crime, although there was an increase in persons crimes and property mischief. He said that the biggest decreases were in theft under $5,000 and fraud.
Drug enforcement in Boyle saw an increase in possession charges, as well. Tardif said there were nine confirmed cases from January to the end of July 2016, and 26 in the same time period this year. Tardif said the average is around 20.
After months of lobbying Canada Post to reconsider a decision to move some Athabasca County residents’ mailboxes from Athabasca to Colinton, the Athabasca County council may get to sit down with a representative from the postal service.
In a letter addressed to Reeve Doris Splane, Canada Post director of municipal engagement Marnie Armstrong wrote, “We would be pleased to appear at a Council meeting in the fall once we have a more concrete position in place.”
Armstrong’s letter was a response to a letter the council addressed to Minister Judy Foote July and later sent to Armstrong.
Athabasca County council moved to formally support the annexation of the Summer Village of Sunset Beach.
Sunset Beach wrote council a letter dated Aug. 17 to request their formal support in redrawing the summer village’s boundaries to include an additional 4.5 acres of land.
This will allow four Sunset Beach families to divide and consolidate a piece of county land which lies next their properties that they purchased together.
Division 7 Coun. Paul Ponich moved to formally support the annexation application. Division 2 Coun. Denis Willcott motioned to authorize Reeve Doris Splane to sign the annexation application on behalf of county council, as per county staff recommendations. Both motions were passed by council.
