It was a busy week for Westman Detachment members who responded to 72 calls for service this week.
Traffic-wise, we had five reports of erratic drivers, one fail to stop at a stop sign, one failure to ensure the child is restrained (Highway Traffic Act Section 186(9) and a $298.00 fine) one vehicle rollover with no injuries, and one fail to obey a stop sign. Your members also warned or charged 17 individuals for speeding. Slow down folks, we pay enough to the government as it is, no need to volunteer further contributions. Slow down and enjoy the ride.
There were two hit and runs reported in Virden. One at the auction mart and one at the Co-op grocery store. No leads surfaced to identify those responsible. A hit and run was also reported, but happened at Wal-Mart in Brandon, but we took the report for insurance purposes. It should have been reported to Brandon City, but the Detachment clerks here took care of it anyway because they’re nice.
Two false alarms were reported. False alarms will get zero interest if the keyholder isn’t interested in their alarm. All too often we’ve attended false alarms and are standing around outside a building at 3 a.m. wondering if we should break in to find out if someone broke in. If your alarm is going off, we need you to participate.
We also had a call about a house being moved that didn’t have the required flagging and was dangerous according to the caller. Your member (Cst Morisette) called the complainant who had never heard of a house being moved before in his 60+ years of being alive. Your member confirmed the vehicle had a lead and tail vehicle, and allowed traffic to pass every so often as is common in these situations. I guess there’s a first time for everything.
A mischief in Reston was reported where someone ran over a guy’s tree on the corner of his property. No witnesses and no clues on scene. Your members responded to a fire when an overheated vehicle caught on fire. No injuries, and a great response by your local fire department.
A fire was deliberately set to a vehicle in Sioux Valley. Members investigated and determined who the culprit was. He was arrested, and lodged until sober and will be charged with arson and mischief under $5000.
RCMP members responded to three mental health calls where we assisted the hospital, ensuring people were transported to get the care they needed. They also responded to a sudden death in the RM of Two Borders that was deemed not suspicious nor criminal.
A report came in about individuals in Sioux Valley dealing crack and meth, however the caller did not want to provide their identity or further information, making it difficult to complete any meaningful follow up investigation. We’re also aware of similar enterprising people in other parts of the detachment area including Virden who are unlicensed pharmacists. This is bad, and we can all safely assume their quality control is non-existent. We encourage people to not buy drugs from drug dealers and I can assure you anyone being charged with dealing drugs in this area will have their name released to the media upon being charged so you’ll know who to avoid being associated with.
An individual from Sioux Valley was reported texting someone he wasn’t supposed to, and failing to comply to court ordered conditions. Arrangements were to be made through a third party, which we certainly hope will be the process moving forward. He was given a warning.
A vehicle was parked at the Co-op food store and the driver walked away towards the highway. The caller felt this suspicious and phoned police who determined the vehicle was not stolen and the owner was coming back for it. No big deal.
A vehicle theft was reported after someone lent someone their car. Since it wasn’t back on time, the owner decided to report it stolen. I’m afraid it just doesn’t work that way. Freely lending someone a car means it isn’t stolen. However, a vehicle was stolen in the wee hours of the morning on Princess Street in Virden the night of Aug. 29. Another vehicle was stolen from Scarth Dr. in Virden on the night of Aug. 31. What I’m about to write next is very important. Do not leave your keys in your vehicle. The people who steal things are not smart, and they aren’t hacking into car computers or anything like that, they’re simple people with a simple plan – take vehicles that have the keys in them. Don’t make it so easy. Lock it up.
Four reports of suspicious persons: A male was seen wandering around near a personal care home. Cst Lafreniere did not locate the guy. An unknown male was reported walking around Virden observed hugging a pole and talking to himself. He was described as having long hair, black sweater and red backpack. Members had received multiple calls about this individual and patrols made but he was GOA (gone on arrival). In Sioux Valley an individual reported someone sitting on their trampoline but they the person was gone by the time we got there. Finally, an individual is reported to be going into area where there are cattle and leaving gates open, going through buildings and damaging property. The investigation is ongoing and a suspect has been identified.
A report came in of harassing communications at Sioux Valley. That remains under investigation. There were also two reports of harassment in Virden. One individual seemed to have a one-way crush on the complainant who wanted the advances to stop. The other sent unwanted photos to an ex which is also not advisable and we’re in the midst of ensuring everyone understands the concept of boundaries moving forward.
A call from EMS came in as they were responding to a call of a possible drug overdose in Sioux Valley. They provided care to the individual and didn’t require police to assist.
A report of a theft of tires in Sioux Valley turned out to be a civil issue involving tenants, property, and apparently inheritance dispute. None of these are police matters.
Speaking of non-police matters, we received a request from Health Canada to ensure an individual was adhering to their quarantine requirements. Cst Driedger bravely conducted the quarantine check and I’m pleased to report the person in question was found at home as required.
An individual from Sioux Valley was reported to have injuries consistent with being stabbed, but did not want police to help in any way. We tried to follow up with hospitals to get the 411 on what happened, but did not have any success. Can’t make people let us help them, so we moved on. No hard feelings and we hope he has a speedy recovery.
An individual called police for assistance as she’d had a verbal dispute with her boyfriend in Sioux Valley. Members attended and located the caller and determined no violence had occurred, however the caller was found to have a warrant for her arrest out of Winnipeg, so she was arrested. Winnipeg Police Service was ok releasing her and she was released to a family member after being given another court date in Winnipeg after she sobered up.
An individual in Sioux Valley reported someone banging on her door with a machete while intoxicated. Your members located the two culprits and arrested and lodged them. Charges are pending.
Several assaults reported this week. The first one involved kids under 12 who were spoken to and the situation was resolved. A report came from Niagara Regional Police that an assault may have occurred in our area, which remains under investigation right now. A domestic assault occurred in Kenton and the suspect was arrested, lodged, and released in Brandon as he’s not allowed near the victim(s) identified in the investigation. An assault was reported in Sioux Valley involving several suspects, victims and witnesses. Statements have been obtained and Cst Lafreniere is investigating.
There were also four incidents of people uttering threats this reporting period. Three in Sioux Valley and one in Virden. Two remain under investigation, one resulted in charges, and the other one, the complainant didn’t wish to pursue charges.
Your members conducted four well being checks this week, three in Sioux Valley and one in the RM of Sifton.
So that’s the week we’ve had. As you can see, we’re staying busy and not having a lot of time to sit around looking cool and eating donuts. We have three new cadets this month, Cst Sarah Lussier from the Gatineau area of Quebec, Cst Tyler Jones from Winnipeg, and Cst Adamo Terranova from Ottawa. Their field trainers are Csts Shaad Azeez, Val Lapointe, and Jason Lafreniere.
We’ve been in a bit of a crunch for members as of late and look forward to these three new members to be a positive part of the Westman Detachment area. We also have seen Cpl Mike Eady head out to Alberta.
Cpl Tracey Santo is one of our new supervisors. Cpl Santo is a Whitewood, Sask product who does not appreciate jokes about Saskatchewan. Cpl Kevin Bruce is the usual writer of the police report, and he’s from the St. Andrews area in Manitoba. He does appreciate a good joke about Saskatchewan.
Hopefully we’ll see a slowdown in calls for service coming up with the end of summer. Hope you made the best of it! Cheers!
