Richard Froese
South Peace News

Peace Regional RCMP were busy over the Christmas season as officers responded to thefts involving unlocked vehicles, cybercrime and impaired driving.
Sgt. Dave Browne says statistics were higher in December compared to the same month in 2020.
“The detachment had a busy holiday season, responding to about 526 calls in December, compared to about 475 calls in the same period the year before,” Browne says.
During extreme cold temperatures, officers responded to 12 stolen vehicles that were unlocked.
“Police remind the public to take steps to prevent theft by locking their vehicle, removing valuables and not to leave vehicles running with keys inside, even if stepping away from it momentarily,” Browne says.
“Always lock your vehicle doors.
“Remove valuables from your vehicle, including wallets, purses, shopping bags, money, electronics and sunglasses and consider utilizing a steer wheel lock.”
Last summer, the Peace Regional RCMP Community Advisory Committee conducted several “Lock It or Lose It” campaigns in local business parking lots in an effort to curb property crime and thefts from vehicles.
“Police encourage the public to continue to secure their property, even with the changing of the seasons,” Browne says.
Similarly, police responded to several reports of online fraud and cybercrime as e-commerce increased during the holiday season.
“Police remind the public to take steps to prevent cybercrime,” Browne says.
“Don’t re-use passwords, change them often and take the time to create a combination of letters, numbers and special characters to create a password that’s not easy to guess.
“If doing online shopping, buy from reputable sources and don’t let unbeatable prices cloud your judgment.”
He also advises people to avoid following links in emails, especially when receiving emails from unknown or unfamiliar sources.
“If receiving unexpected email correspondence from businesses or financial institutions, take the time to verify the legitimacy of them by calling the company directly, utilizing known phone numbers rather than those that may be provided in the email,” Browne says.
“Taking these and other precautions can reduce the likelihood that people will experience fraud or cybercrime.”
Incidents of drinking and driving were down considerably compared the same month the year before.
Peace Regional RCMP responded to about nine impaired driving calls in December compared to 20 from the same period the year before, he says.
“While the reduction in impaired driving calls is encouraging, we remind motorists to continue to help us ensure that families make it safely to and from their destinations,” Browne says.
Peace RCMP focused on traffic safety during December and conducted check stops.
Dec. 4 was National Impaired Driving Enforcement Day and officers staged check points at five locations on the weekend, Dec. 3-5.