Quesnel Residents Reminded to Help Prevent Crime
Quesnel, B.C. – “Quesnel may be a small town, but we still have the big city problems” says Sgt. Chris Riddle of the Quesnel RCMP detachment.
He says there has been “Higher than normal calls” for service over property theft from homes and vehicles.
“We know there is always an increase because it’s summertime and people leave their windows open” says Sgt, Riddle. So to help reduce crime, he is passing along some tips to help deter theft.
He says there is information that goes out on social media, that is not always correct “I want to set the record straight, this is what you need to do, don’t put it on facebook, phone the police first, we need to have the most up to date information so we can deploy our resources and maybe find someone while they are do it ( breaking in) or at least have details on descriptions, times, so we can work on it.”
One of the key tips says Sgt. riddle is to get to know your neighbours. In a world where most people are on facebook, or using other social media, too often they haven’t connected with the people living next to them, the people who can keep an eye open for unusual or suspicious behaviour around your home.
Other helpful tips include:
- •Don’t leave empty cartons in your carport, yard or driveway. You are advertising the fact you have a brand new flat screen TV, laptop, iPad or other very desirable object to steal.
•Keep your doors locked even though you may just be in your back yard. It doesn’t take long for a thief to slip into and out of your home.
•Close and lock all windows each time you leave your home and ensure your windows are secure while you are sleeping.
•If you have an alarm, ensure to set it before you leave home. Ensure a keyholder is identified and provided to the alarm company to check on your alarm system should it become faulty.
•Do not keep ladders or tools on the outside of your home. If an item can be used to gain entry into your home keep it locked up and out of sight.
•Always keep your vehicle locked and windows rolled up. Valuables such as your wallet or purse need to be taken inside with you. Items such as sunglasses, loose change and electronics need to be stored out of sight even if your car is parked in your carport or driveway.
•While on vacation arrange for someone to mow your lawn and pick up your mail. It’s ideal to have someone you trust house-sit for you so your home is still lived in while you are away. If this is not possible make sure your home looks lived in during your time away.
•Record serial numbers, keep a log and take pictures of items in your storage shed, including your bicycles, lawn mowers and other big ticket items.
•Check on your storage shed / outbuildings from time to time to make sure items are safe and nothing has been tampered with. If you find that it has been broken into, call the RCMP; we want to know about it even if nothing has been stolen.
Many of the Break and Enter and Theft cases remain open and the police are working on leads to hold those responsible for these crimes accountable. Should you have any information on any recent break and enter or thefts that have occurred in the Quesnel area, please call the Quesnel RCMP at (250) 992-9211 or BC Crimestoppers at 1-800-222-8477 and provide your information.
Comments
I love how its all our responsibility to prevent crime, the criminals never get any of the blame.
“If you find that it has been broken into, call the RCMP; we want to know about it even if nothing has been stolen.”
No, they don’t. Been there, they don’t care.
I have been there on two occasions with break and entry into a store. In and out in 2 minutes. Too late for security and most definitely to late for RCMP.
RCMP took inventory of stolen good, description and all, and no results, even when we saw a jacket being worn on the streets within a few days.
Totally useless.
I would like to see some stats, rather than advice.
I noticed that the new Dental office on 10th and HWY97 has roll shutters on the ground floor windows. Rare in Canada and much more common in Europe.
of course the cops want to know. they wont do a bloody thing to help YOU, but at the end of the fiscal year, they can go hat in hand to city councils and say, ‘look at the crime numbers, we need more cops’ . it is a crock of shit. years ago i had some tools stolen. cops came, took a statement, and buggered off. bloody thrill. i hunted down my tools at a pawn shop and then call the cops and had them witness ME taking my crap back. beautiful how i did their job.
“look at the crime numbers”?
How about also looking at the number of solved crimes. What are they? They need to show that they can solver them, the success rate, and the cause and effect of having more police. If more police does not increase the success rate, they should not be allowed to hire more.
Maybe better quality crime solvers are needed, not more.
I don’t get it. Here we have a report on how to keep our stuff secure and people can only bellyache about perceived inaction or grumble about stats.
HAVE A BEER! The negative outweighs the positive every time, but that’s a psychological thing. If you don’t secure and lock up, you’re going to get stuff stolen.
Used to be a criminal found with a pipe wrench, big screwdriver and a claw bar was charged with possession of house breaking instruments. Now it’s saws,zip cutters, anything rechargeable AND THEY ARE FAST.
So check your house, check your vehicles and sheds before you bed down, don’t leave stuff out if you don’t want it stolen. And quit crying about the police because you didn’t lock it up. Quite a lot of stolen property ends up in Edmonton, Vancouver and with the reporting procedure pawn shops have these days, we’ve come a long way.
Comments for this article are closed.