Westlock RCMP Staff Sgt. Al Baird is encouraging the public to use the web tool, found at https://ocre-sielc.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/alberta, to report small crimes like damage/mischief to property under $5,000, theft of a bicycle under $5,000, theft under $5,000, theft from a vehicle under $5,000 and lost property — the initiative started in Airdrie, Banff, Cold Lake, Grande Prairie, Red Deer and Strathcona County June 1 before its province-wide roll out Aug. 11.
Baird said having accurate crime stats is just one of the tools used by the RCMP to determine how many officers get assigned to an area. In an RCMP release it notes that reporting less serious crimes via the web also helps emergency call-takers and frontline members to focus on high-priority calls.
“Sometimes people don’t want to call us because they don’t want to bother us with smaller things, but this way they can get put into our database so we can get an accurate count of the crime that’s actually happening,” said Baird, noting that as of Sept. 2 no report had been filed locally via the web tool.
“So let’s say one day we catch a bad guy and he says that he stole a garden gnome, but he has no idea where it came from. If the person had reported it online, we can check those files and see where it happened, or even possibly return the property. At the very least we can see if there’s a crime pattern in a part of the town, or county and direct our patrols there.
“Granted those kinds of small crimes are hard to solve, but I guarantee 100 per cent it won’t be solved if they don’t report it to us.”
All crimes reported online will be followed up with a phone call from a police officer in “K” Division’s Call Back Unit (CBU) within five business days. As well, the web tool cannot be used if there are witnesses or suspects, the items lost or stolen cost more than $5,000 or the vandalized property will cost more than $5,000 to repair. Cases involving personal identity, firearms, licence plates or decals can also not be reported via the online tool.
"Online crime reporting is accessible and convenient, and will help us capture more intelligence when it comes to property crime occurring in all of the communities we serve. Offering a contactless service is also vital in these times when physical distancing is so important,” said deputy commissioner Curtis Zablocki, commanding officer of Alberta RCMP in a release.
Baird has continually asked the public to report all manner of crime to the RCMP as complaining about an incident on social media doesn’t help them. He added that all reports are taken seriously and crimes reported online will be treated just the same as if they were done over the phone, or in person.
“One of the messages I’ve been trying to get out since I’ve been here is that to please call us no matter how small the incident is. If you don’t call, it’s not on paper and, as far as the stats go, it hasn’t happened,” Baird noted.
“So, if the numbers are there and the province sees that and our district sees that then we may be in line for another officer which is more boots on the ground. They go by the stats, not by what people are saying on Facebook.”
