Crime
RCMP campaign finds Red Deer drivers perform dismally … Are you inviting thieves to take your vehicle?
From Red Deer RCMP
Red Deer RCMP and Citizens on Patrol Lock it or Lose It campaign reminds drivers to secure their items
On March 15, Red Deer RCMP Members, Community Police Officers, and Red Deer Citizens on Patrol (COP) volunteers from Red Deer and Ponoka conducted Lock it or Lose It inspections at two locations in Red Deer.
During the campaign, vehicles at Westerner Park and Carnival Cinemas were inspected. Volunteers did not try doors or touch vehicles, other than to leave a report card at the vehicle, flagging temptations that might encourage a thief to break into the vehicle or try to steal it. Results from the day were not encouraging.
At Westerner Park, 194 vehicles were inspected and only 9.3 per cent of vehicles received a thumbs up. Volunteers found personal documents, mail, retail items and garage door openers in plain sight. Further, three trucks had tools, tool boxes or valuable items in the box of the truck.
At Carnival Cinemas, 105 vehicles were inspected with 35 per cent of vehicles receiving a thumbs up. Again, volunteers found many items in plain sight, including cell phones, keys, bags and purses, work identification and garage door openers.
RCMP flag visible garage door openers as a temptation because thieves will smash vehicle windows in order to steal garage door openers, which they can then use to access the garage – and the residence itself, if a connecting door is left unlocked.
“We run the Lock it or Lose It campaign multiple times a year and we continue to see the same results, which is disappointing,” said Constable Sean Morris with the Red Deer RCMP. “Many smash and grab crimes are preventable, and we’re asking citizens to protect themselves by taking the extra few seconds to secure their valuables so as to not tempt would-be thieves.”
Volunteers also attended the Red Deer Rebels game on March 15 to speak to citizens about auto theft awareness. Drivers were given “All Valuables Removed” window makers, with the purpose of notifying potential criminals that the owner has removed anything of value from the vehicle, in hope to deter auto theft.
During Lock it or Lose it checks, vehicle owners also get reminders about expired or soon-to-expire registration, and volunteers flag issues such as cracked windshields or a note that the vehicle appeared to have been left unlocked.
The Lock it or Lose it campaign is part of ongoing crime reduction work by Red Deer RCMP and local crime prevention agencies to educate Red Deerians.
Alberta
Former senior financial advisor charged with embezzling millions from Red Deer area residents
News release from Alberta RCMP
Former senior financial advisor charged for misappropriating nearly $5 million from clients
On April 4, 2024, the RCMP’s Provincial Financial Crime Team charged a Calgary resident for fraud-related offences after embezzling millions of dollars from his clients while serving as a senior financial advisor.
Following a thorough investigation, the accused is alleged to have fraudulently withdrawn funds from client accounts and deposited them into bank accounts he personally controlled. A total of sixteen victims were identified in the Red Deer area and suffered a combined loss of nearly $5 million.
Marc St. Pierre, 52, a resident of Calgary, was arrested and charged with:
- Fraud over $5,000 contrary to section 380(1)(a) of the Criminal Code; and,
- Theft over $5,000 contrary to section 344(a) of the Criminal Code.
St. Pierre is scheduled to appear in Red Deer Provincial Court on May 14, 2024.
“The ability for financial advisors to leverage their position to conduct frauds and investment scams represents a significant risk to the integrity of Alberta’s financial institutions. The investigation serves as an important reminder for all banking clients to regularly check their accounts for any suspicious activity and to report it to their bank’s fraud prevention team.”
- Sgt. John Lamming, Provincial Financial Crime Team
The Provincial Financial Crime Team is a specialized unit that conducts investigations relating to multi-jurisdictional serious fraud, investments scams and corruption.
Addictions
British Columbia should allow addicts to possess even more drugs, federal report suggests
From LifeSiteNews
Despite the drug crisis only getting worse in British Columbia after decriminalization, a federal report by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research advocates for further relaxing its policy so addicts can possess even more drugs.
Despite the drug crisis only worsening since decriminalization, federal researchers are now advocating for British Columbia to allow the possession of even larger quantities of cocaine, claiming that current possession limits don’t allow addicts to buy enough.
According to a federal report published April 23 by Blacklock’s Reporter, the current decriminalization program in British Columbia approved by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government has set cocaine possession limits “too low.”
“People who use drugs are less concerned about being arrested and feel more comfortable carrying substances they need,” said the report by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. “The threshold of 2.5 grams is too low and is unreflective of users’ substance use and purchasing patterns.”
Under the policy, which launched in early 2023, the federal government began allowing people within the province to possess up to 2.5 grams of hard drugs – including cocaine, opioids, ecstasy and methamphetamine – without criminal penalty, but selling drugs remained a crime.
The policy has been widely criticized, especially after it was found that the province broke three different drug-related overdose records in the first month the new law was in effect.
However, now researchers are claiming that the new policy is insufficient for drug users.
“People who use drugs indicated the 2.5 gram threshold is too low and unreflective of their substance use patterns,” the report stated. “Although some people indicated the policy wouldn’t impact their purchasing patterns because they are unable to purchase large amounts at a time, others suggested it may force them to seek out substances more frequently which could increase their risk of harms.”
“Buying in bulk may be more economical particularly for people who use drugs,” it continued, adding that it was “common practice to purchase in bulk and split or share among peers.”
The recommendation comes as deaths from drug overdoses in Canada have gone through the roof in recent years, particularly in British Columbia.
The effects of decriminalizing hard drugs in various parts of Canada has been exposed in Aaron Gunn’s recent documentary, Canada is Dying, and in U.K. Telegraph journalist Steven Edginton’s mini-documentary, Canada’s Woke Nightmare: A Warning to the West.
Gunn says he documents the “general societal chaos and explosion of drug use in every major Canadian city.”
“Overdose deaths are up 1,000 percent in the last 10 years,” he said in his film, adding that “[e]very day in Vancouver four people are randomly attacked.”
Similarly, even Liberals have begun to condemn Trudeau’s “safe supply” program, linking them to “chaos” in cities.
“Safe supply“ is the term used to refer to government-prescribed drugs that are given to addicts under the assumption that a more controlled batch of narcotics reduces the risk of overdose – critics of the policy argue that giving addicts drugs only enables their behavior, puts the public at risk, disincentivizes recovery from addiction and has not reduced, and sometimes even increased, overdose deaths where implemented.
Last week, Liberal MP Dr. Marcus Powlowski revealed that violence from drug users has become a problem in Ottawa, especially in areas near so-called “safe supply” drug sites which operate within blocks of Parliament Hill.
“A few months ago I was downtown in a bar here in Ottawa, not that I do that very often, but a couple of colleagues I met up with, one was assaulted as he was going to the bar, another one was threatened,” said Powlowski.
“Within a month of that I was returning down Wellington Street from downtown, the Rideau Centre, and my son who is 15 was coming after me,” he continued. “It was nighttime and there was someone out in the middle of the street, yelling and screaming, accosting cars.”
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