The night of Jan. 16 might have been described as a frustrating one for members of the Estevan Police Service who were required to attend to a variety of calls and complaints with several of them resulting in dead end situations.
A report of suspicious activity involving a loosened gas cap, but no gasoline missing from a vehicle, was looked into by EPS members that night. No suspect was identified as a result of the ensuing police patrol of the neighbourhood.
Another call regarding a hit and run in a parking lot on the east side of the city, also resulted in no suspects being unearthed following a search of the area.
The next call came as a result of a response to a security alarm being set off in the east central area of the city. A further check of the business revealed that one of the doors in the establishment was not secure. Police searched the property and when that was completed, the door was secured by police.
The next call was a 911 emergency response request that led police to the east central area of the city. The caller had indicated there was a potential disturbance brewing at the business, but when police arrived staff members informed them that matters were now okay and no further action was required.
A traffic stop on the city’s north side finally did result in an arrest and charges being laid against someone when a 38-year-old Estevan man was charged with impaired driving and driving while his blood-alcohol level was over .08 per cent. The man was lodged in cells due to his elevated status of intoxication. He now has a March 30 court date.
A report of a fight outside a residence on the city’s south side attracted police attention on Jan. 16, but police noted there was no fight underway upon their arrival. Police were able to stop a vehicle containing several passengers who were spoken to about their possible activities, but no further policing action was required.
On Jan. 18, EPS members were called to a north central area of the city in response to a report of a man in distress. The subject was found and transported to St. Joseph’s Hospital for observation. It was learned the man checked himself out of that facility a short time later.
Another call on Jan. 18 led police to a possible domestic disturbance in the northeast area of the city. A 27-year-old Estevan woman was found outside the residence and was taken to the EPS station and cells where she was lodged for the night after being charged for being intoxicated in public.
On the night of Jan. 19, police responded to a 911 call just before midnight which led them to an apartment building in the city’s northeast area.
Police attempted to make contact with the occupants of the home, but no one was answering the door or responding to subsequent phone calls to the home. Police made a forced entry into the home and located a man and woman in the apartment who claimed they were sleeping and had not called 911.
Police were not satisfied with the answers in the follow up investigation so the man was arrested on a charge of public mischief and transported to the police station where he faced a criminal code charge of public mischief and misuse of the emergency 911 systems. The Emergency 911 Systems Act focuses on the use of a telephone to place a false, frivolous or vexatious call using the 911 service.
