Rural crime has dropped over past year

Alberta Justice Minister and Solicitor General Kathleen Ganley announced this week that her government’s efforts to stem the tide of rural crime were bearing fruit.

“Between the Rural Crime Strategy and budget, we have hired 59 new RCMP officers and 40 civilian staff to support them, and today we are seeing the impact of those investments,” she said. “Since January property crime is down about 11 per cent across rural Alberta, and I think it is important for us to remember in each instance those statistics represent families who feel safer in their homes.”

Ganley credited the RCMP’s Regional Rural Crime Units with coming up with a new intelligence-gathering strategy focused on habitual offenders, backed by provincial government resources, with the overall reduction in criminal activity in rural areas, with 2,400 fewer total thefts, 366 fewer break-ins and 648 fewer vehicle thefts in 2018 compared to the same time period last year.

“Since February, those units have made nearly 700 arrests and laid approximately 2,200 charges,” Ganley said. “I know not all political parties are supportive of continuing with the RCMP, but I think they have worked incredibly hard on this and we are seeing the results.”

Ganley voiced her support for the RCMP, despite recent calls from opposition members to terminate the organization’s contract and move toward establishing local police forces to combat rural crime.

“Now would be a very challenging time to launch a brand new police force which doesn’t have the experience dealing with these issues,” she stated. “I think the data bears out the approach we’re taking is correct.”

Ganley said she would continue to work with the RCMP, and other law enforcement agencies in the province, to ensure this recent downward trend in rural crime continues.

“Our government has shown a willingness to care about the service delivery, and to ensure we are putting adequate resources in place regardless of what the price of oil is,” she said. “And we will continue to do that. Our opposition may feel that is not the right choice, but we will continue to move forward with that strategy.”