Crime rates have fallen throughout the Sunshine Coast, according to fourth quarter statistics from the RCMP, but Staff Sgt. Poppy Hallam says the numbers don’t tell the whole story.
In a Feb. 16 presentation to Gibsons council, Sunshine Coast RCMP Sgt. Don Newman presented statistics showing a drop across almost every crime category from October to December compared with the same time period in previous years.
Break and enters were down, with the exception of Gibsons, where nine incidents were reported in the fourth quarter, compared with four in 2019. There were fewer thefts from motor vehicles, except for in the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD), where thefts climbed to 13 from seven in the fourth quarter of 2019.
Across the Coast there were fewer collisions and impaired driving files and a one per cent increase in violation tickets issued.
Proactive police action was also down last quarter. There were zero road checks compared with seven in 2019, fewer curfew checks, street checks and foot patrols.
Hallam, however, cited COVID-19 precautions as the reason for the decrease in proactive action. “This is for the safety of the officers and the safety of the Sunshine Coast,” she said at an SCRD policing committee meeting in January.
Mental health calls have also increased on the Sunshine Coast and fewer people are being held in custody because of COVID-19. “The community and police officers then don’t get a break from some of these prolific offenders,” she said.
She also noted some “serious crimes” are not reflected in the recent statistics.
Overall, calls of a criminal nature have risen by 50 per cent on the Sunshine Coast since 2017, and calls for service have changed from traffic to “disturbance” – which she said reflects a provincewide trend.
To adapt, the Sunshine Coast RCMP is focusing on illicit drugs and property crime investigations. “When there’s drugs, there’s property crime,” said Hallam, adding while thefts are down, “some of the violence around it has gone up.”
For example, the detachment seized 28 firearms, including handguns, in November, which Hallam described as “unprecedented” for the Sunshine Coast.
