City Police January stats show drops, child sex crimes up

“They’re sensitive files that are under continued investigation, and so we look at them individually,” Bergen said. “We work closely with social services to respond to any concern of any abuse or neglect.”

Bergen said the police force has two officers assigned to the child protection unit in Prince Albert.

“They’re difficult investigations,” Bergen added. “It’s definitely a very important position that our police service holds.”

Other statistics presented to the board of police commissioners included January numbers on property crimes, assaults, robberies and bylaw infractions. Robberies were up in January with seven in 2019 compared to three the same last year. The police service also saw slight increases in January in the number of charges for drug possession and trafficking, 21 in 2019 compared to 11 in 2018.

January stats from the Integrated Street Enforcement Team (ISET) show eight files were concluded resulting in the arrest of 15 people and a combined 81 charges related to drug possession and trafficking. The ISET team executed four search warrants in January, seized two firearms and more than $9,400 in cash, along with 29.35 grams of meth, 6.2 grams of cocaine, 118.5 grams of crack cocaine and 200 ml. of GHB.

Police also seized more firearms in January at 14, compared to 10 the same month in 2018. The report to the board of police commissioners said seven of the 14 firearms collected this past January were related to an incident in the 700 Block of 12th St. W. in which a 43-year-old man was shot but survived.

Two of the weapons were found during vehicle stops, the report noted, while five others were located by officers on routine patrol and another two seized during ISET investigations.

Calls related to family and domestic violence were up in January, with officers responding to 227 during the month, a 9.04 per cent increase over January 2018.

Other statistics trended down in January, including impaired driving. In January, police responded to eight calls related to impaired driving, compared to 20 for the same month in 2018. The police service said part of the drop was due to the implementation of the Combined Traffic Services unit (CTSS), which has led to more vehicle stops. The CTSS unit also issued 555 traffic enforcement tickets in January, compared to 393 in January 2018.

Property crimes in general were also down in January. Police responded to 211 calls for things like arsons, shoplifting and possession of stolen property in January, just slightly less than January of 2018 when they responded to 213.

Break and enters to homes, outbuildings and businesses were also down in January by eight percent. Police were called to 37 calls that month, compared to 40 for the same time in 2018.

On the bylaw side, officers responded to 279 incidents for everything from parking and garbage concerns to unsightly properties, speeding, unlicensed drivers and animal control calls.

The statistical breakdown of bylaw calls showed the majority, or 21 per cent, originated out of Ward 3 in Prince Albert, which includes the Midtown area. Ward 2, including Little Red River Park, Nordale and Hazeldell, accounted for 21 per cent of bylaw calls, while Ward 1 accounted for 13 per cent of calls.

Calls to other wards in Prince Albert accounted for six to 10 per cent of all bylaw calls in January.

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charlene.tebbutt@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @CharleneTebbutt

by Charlene Tebbutt

City Police January stats show drops, child sex crimes up

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