ATHABASCA – Athabasca RCMP laid out their priorities for the public at a virtual town hall meeting May 12 and those priorities are the same ones they’ve been working on for the past year — drugs and substance abuse; property crime and repeat offender management; and visibility and community engagement.
S/Sgt. Mark Hall was joined by Cpl. Alan Caldwell and several other members of the detachment for a rundown of not only those priorities, but a year-in-review as well, which showed the lowest number of calls for service in five years in 2021. And while a lot of that may be due to the COVID-19 pandemic, said Hall, local members are still out there every day doing good work for the community.
Overall, the five-year crime numbers show an increase from 4,061 in 2017 to 4,557 in 2019 before falling to 3,836 in 2021. Also provided were location statistics from the last five years which show Athabasca County has consistently had the greatest number of calls over that time — not surprising, considering the detachment area stretches from Rochester up to Calling Lake.
Last year, RCMP responded to 1,427 calls in the county; 1080 within the Town of Athabasca; 454 within the M.D. of Opportunity; and 269 specifically at the Jean Baptiste Gambler Reserve. There were also 656 calls categorized as ‘Other’. Ratios remain relatively static throughout the five years.
“We were told that drugs are an issue within the communities the Athabasca RCMP polices, and I can tell you that they are, and have been an issue,” he said. “Some of the stuff that we've seen in the area has been problematic. Drugs tend to start things off that lead into other crimes, such as property crime, which I know some of you have seen or been a victim of here.”
He noted there were three drug warrants executed in the first three months of 2022 that yielded all sorts of drugs, but the most common by far was methamphetamine, followed by GHB.
“We're moving those things out of our communities, from the traffickers, from the dealers. It has been extremely, extremely important and well-received from the community members that I've spoken to,” said Hall, adding that over the last year local RCMP have executed eight search warrants that resulted in 11 people being charged.
“It's really successful for such a small detachment here, that we're able to do that in such a short time.”
With those search warrants often come finds of stolen property including vehicles, ATVs, and just last week, an excavator, that have been taken from residents from throughout the detachment area and beyond.
With a near-full complement of members at this time, Hall also said the detachment was able to create a position to focus on crime reduction specifically “and it’s been absolutely fantastic.”
Const. Billy Kelly took the lead on that project and provided the 40 attendees with an overview of some of the work he has been doing to reduce drug crime specifically. He noted that while methamphetamine is commonly known as a white, crystalline substance; he has seen cases where it has been died in different colours.
GHB (gamma hydroxybutyrate) is a clear liquid that became popular as a date rape drug and is often now intentionally mixed in drinks by users to cause drowsiness, euphoria and sometimes full blackouts. Kelly said while it is odourless and colourless like water, it appears thick when swirled in its container and is thick like jelly.
“It is becoming more frequent in our area along with the methamphetamine,” he said, urging attendees to use Crimestoppers to report suspicious activity, reminding them they always remain anonymous when they do.
“I don't think we utilize it enough. By all means, call Crimestoppers and let us know, because if we don't know what's happening, it's hard for us to really get in there and know some of these houses that are an issue for the community … We have been doing a lot of great work in curbing the illegal drug activity in our community. And we're committed to pursuing anybody involved in the distribution or essentially anything to do with controlled substances within our communities.”
With drugs and property crime occupying much of the members’ time, Hall said the next priority will be community engagement and visibility, of which the virtual town hall was a part — it was the second one this year.
Hall said members take part in school activities, when possible, though it too has been curbed by the pandemic. They’re taking part in community events, like the Winter Festival and Remembrance Day. He also noted a larger media presence, and an upcoming teepee ceremony.
“We're looking at ways to build bridges and really connect with the community in any shape and form,” said Hall, adding he plans for “a lot more community involvement.”
“That's really where we win is getting the community involved in having them, having you guys, provide information, so we can actually move forward with some of these investigations that we have,” he told attendees.
