Recent crime statistics from Fort St. John RCMP reveal a surge in shoplifting and vehicle theft cases.
In his monthly report, presented to City Council on February 10th, Staff Sergeant Scott Watson noted that shoplifting cases increased from 14 in December to 24 in January, describing the rise as a “dramatic upward trend.”
Vehicle thefts also saw an uptick last month, with 11 reported incidents compared to nine the month prior. The trend appears to be continuing into February, with the RCMP reporting six stolen cars between Friday and Monday. In two of these cases, drivers left their cars unattended in alleged warm-up thefts.
However, theft from vehicles slightly decreased, dropping from 11 cases in December to seven in January.
In terms of policing resources, the Street Enforcement Team now has full staffing. Some positions remain
unfilled, including one vacancy in the General Investigation Section (GIS), one in the Municipal Traffic unit, and two hard vacancies for constables.