Armed suspects concerning for RCMP

BARRHEAD - Leave policing to the professionals. 

It is a message that Barrhead RCMP Detachment commander Sgt. Bob Dodds has said before, but it is one he believes bears repeating. 

Especially considering the number of criminals in the area that are brandishing firearms, he told County of Barrhead councillors during their Nov. 1 meeting. 

He said that on Oct. 29, a Fort Assiniboine resident reported that when he went outside to investigate a suspicious vehicle on his property, he encountered an armed thief. 

"He went out with a flashlight and found the individual. He then decides to confront them. The individual then walked back to a truck, grabbed a shotgun and pointed it at the resident," Dodds said. "Fortunately, no one was hurt, but it is an example of why you don't want to confront these people. Instead, call us as soon as you see it, not the next day or even an hour. We will come as soon as we can. It is our job to confront these people because you don't know what you are getting into." 

Dodds noted this is the second time in less than a month that police learned about a shotgun that was in a criminal's possession. The first was in the Oct. 3 motor vehicle accident when a stolen pickup truck was involved in a head-on collision on Highway 654 near Highway 777 that claimed the lives of three people. 

“The individuals in the stolen pickup were packing a sawed-off shotgun," he said. "It is a bit of a disturbing trend that we are seeing". 

Dodds added that it also seems to be part of a larger overall trend of increased criminal activity in the last two months, although he said he does not yet have the statistics to back that up. 

“But we are definitely getting busier,” he said. 

Staffing 

Currently, the Barrhead RCMP Detachment has one general constable vacancy, not counting one general-duty member on temporary leave. 

"It puts us in pretty good shape, especially compared to other rural detachments," he said, adding they had been running with one surplus general duty constable, thanks to a loan from Westlock Traffic. 

The constable was temporarily assigned to the Barrhead detachment more than a year ago until his transfer is complete. 

Dodds said that often when a small detachment has a vacancy, it is filled by a graduate from the training depot. However, he said he is in talks with a member from southern Alberta interested in potentially transferring to the area. 

Public engagement 

In a continued effort to engage the community, Barrhead RCMP has been hosting a series of public engagement sessions, the latest being on Oct. 20 in Neerlandia. 

Unfortunately, Dodds said it was not well attended, with only three public members attending, not including the Barrhead mayor and reeve or the Leader reporter. 

Because of the low attendance, the meeting turned into a roundtable discussion. 

"No one really had any complaints or suggestions about what the RCMP could be doing differently," he said, adding most of the discussion focused on issues with the court and justice system. 

Coun. Walter Preugschas asked if there were ways to prevent vehicle thefts, such as the one that led to the Oct. 3 accident. 

Dodd suggested the tried-and-true method of locking their vehicles and not leaving spare keys inside them. 

He noted the truck involved in the accident, which had been stolen the day before in a crowded church parking lot, had been left unlocked with the keys inside it. 

"I'm not trying to place blame," Dodds said. "The person who stole that truck was going to leave with something. If it wasn't that truck, it would have been another, as I can almost guarantee that it wasn't the only one with the keys in it, but there are basic things we can do to make things more difficult for thieves." 

He added that one Barrhead property seems to be a particular target for auto thieves, saying it had been targeted multiple times. 

On one of the latest occasions, they found the stolen vehicle in Peace River. 

"The reason we found it was that a kid up there traded a snowmobile for it, was stolen and only realized it when he tried to register it," Dodds said. 

arry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com