NB crime statistics given to city council

Though S. Sgt Phil Wilson was unable to be at city council Monday, he provided an update about current crime statistics.

Down for the month of June were person offences, from 92 in 2011 to 60 in June 2012, break and enters, from 13 to nine, property offences, from 249 to 235, criminal code offences, from 223 to 168, liquor act violations, from 43 to 37 and car accidents, from 27 to 20. Showing increases were drug offences, from 19 to 38, traffic offences, from 124 to 209 and drunk driving, from 28 to 35.

Year-to-date statistics followed similar trends, with property offences and calls for assistance mostly unchanged , but drug offences up 127 per cent, provincial traffic offences up 49 per cent and car accidents, liquor act violations, person offences and break-and-enters down 39 per cent, 31 per cent, 23 per cent and 15 per cent, respectively. Drug offences followed a similar trend in Battleford, where 20 people were arrested for trafficking cocaine, four people were arrested for scheduling marijuana, five people were arrested for trafficking other schedule 1 drugs and one person was arrested for trafficking schedule IV drugs.

Some trends are visible from the 2010 to 2012 statistics for the second quarter. Break-and-enters have decreased every year, from a high of 79 in 2010 to 24 this year and property offences have shown a consistent drop from 809 to 633. Drug offences, provincial traffic violations, impaired driving and calls for assistance have all shown consistent increases, from 32 to 107, 84 to 636, 74 to 113 and 76 to 252, respectively. Other statistics have fallen and risen each year.

Though Wilson was not available to comment on the statistics, they represent an increase in policing rather than an increase in crime. Drug and traffic offences, as well as drunk driving offences, tend to increase in tandem with increases in police officers.