New Brunswick public safety minister, top RCMP officer address rising crime
New Brunswick’s minister of public safety and the province’s top RCMP officer made a rare joint appearance Thursday to address rising crime.
The crime rate in the province has seen a 26 per cent increase over the past five years, according to Statistics Canada.
The numbers also show that the province’s Crime Severity Index has been the highest among the Atlantic provinces for the last five years and is 20 per cent higher than the national rate.
Kris Austin, New Brunswick’s public safety minister, says government is aware of the rise in crime.
“This police-reported data supports what I’ve been hearing from New Brunswickers and what law enforcement agencies are reporting and saying to us,” said Austin.
The news conference saw the release of provincial crime statistics from police agencies in the province from April 2021 to 2022.
During that time, police across the province made 159 drug seizures, seized about $808,000 in cash, 311 weapons and made 328 arrests related to drug crime.
The province also outlined how it spent $7.6 million since April 2021 to reduce crime. This includes:
- $2.3 million in 2021-22 for the RCMP to start Provincial Crime Reduction Units which focus on high-level drug crime
- $2 million in 2021-22 in the Safer Communities Programs, which includes the Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods (SCAN) program, and enforcement efforts targeting contraband tobacco and cannabis
- $3.3 million this year to create Integrated Drug Enforcement Units. These units include police officers and peace officers from the Department of Justice and Public Safety and focus on street-level and mid-level drug crime
Austin says specialized crime reduction units are making an impact and that incoming legislation to curb the theft of copper and catalytic converters will help too.
In June, residents of McAdam, N.B., held a public meeting about local crime and RCMP coverage around the village.
Mayor Kevin Stannix says there has been some improvement since.
“We did get some extra coverage in the midnight hours, which made quite a difference in criminal activity,” said Stannix.
“Prior to that, between midnight and 8 a.m., we didn’t really have any RCMP or police coverage in the community.”
Assistant Commissioner Deanna Hill, the New Brunswick RCMP’s commanding officer, said a lack of coverage is a common complaint of RCMP policing.
“Wherever I go, I never hear dissatisfaction with the RCMP, our membership, or service,” said Hill. “It’s mostly that there’s not enough of us. They want to see more of us.”
Stannix says the village’s own decision to add cameras in the area has been effective too.
“Once people get the idea that they’re being watched and they’ll be punished if they commit crimes, that tends to lessen crime in those particular areas,” said Stannix.
While talking about the crime numbers, Austin once again defended the provincial government’s decision to build a new jail in the Fredericton region.
“In relation to the increase in the work these officers are doing, yes, it will inevitably result in an increase in inmates. So, that’s the importance of the jail,” said Austin.
Initially tagged to cost $32 million, Austin says the jail’s final price tag is still being worked out.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
NEW More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Angst and calls for resting places as Surrey, B.C., pet cemetery development continues
A single headstone is all that remains of dozens of markers for long-buried pets in a subdivision in Surrey’s Newton neighbourhood, where a half-acre parcel bears a large sign announcing the proposed construction of new homes.
Polar ice is melting and changing Earth's rotation. It's messing with time itself
One day in the next couple of years, everyone in the world will lose a second of their time. Exactly when that will happen is being influenced by humans, according to a new study, as melting polar ice alters the Earth’s rotation and changes time itself.