A couple of shoplifters were thwarted just before Christmas thanks to surveillance videos and quick action by witnesses and Estevan Police Service (EPS) members.
On the night of Dec. 18, police were alerted by some concerned citizens who had noticed some people stealing merchandise from a local business.
When police arrived, they learned that the subjects had left the area, but in interviewing witnesses and viewing the surveillance video, police were able to obtain a good description of the suspects who they located a short time later.
A 41-year-old man and 36-year-old woman from Ontario were arrested and all the items that had been lifted were recovered.
Both suspects face numerous charges of theft plus being in breach of court-ordered conditions and possession of stolen property.
On that same night, police made note of several traffic accidents in the city due to the freezing rain. Several vehicles ended up having to be towed from accident scenes, but no injuries were reported.
On the weekend prior to Christmas, EPS members were busy handling a number of incidents involving intoxicated people. Police report that a total of nine people spent the night in cells one evening. The people were placed into custody for their own protection in some instances such as wandering out into traffic, arguments with taxi operators, and even one inebriated person who was demanding that a local convenience store needed to be open so he could get something to eat. This particular person crawled into a police cruiser and refused to leave until the convenience store operators were arrested for not having their store open. This led to an obvious solution in handling the impromptu hunger strike ... a food-less night in cells.
Three other men were arrested for causing a disturbance at a local fast food shop. It was not recorded whether they ate before they acted up, so they too, may have spent a few hungry hours behind bars.
One of the men being lodged in cells was also found to be in possession of a controlled substance, that being less than 20 grams of marijuana, so he was charged accordingly.
While performing several safety and routine traffic checks, EPS members ended up ticketing 13 drivers for various infractions of the law and impounded two unregistered vehicles.
Another routine stop revealed a person who was in possession of less than 30 grams of marijuana. The 18-year-old accused will be in court on Feb. 4.
An assault that occurred at a local lounge has led to an investigation by EPS members. A 45-year-old man was punched in the head and received a cut above the eye as a result of the attack. The wound was tended to at the hospital and police are now viewing the surveillance video as part of their investigation.
A 25-year-old woman attended to the police station on the Christmas Eve weekend, stating she was being harassed by a man via text messaging. Police contacted the man and warned him about his actions and a mutual friend of the two subjects also intervened to help end the drama and no further action was required by police.
On Dec. 23, a routine traffic stop led to two arrests when the driver of a vehicle provided a false name to police. A check on the correct name indicated that this person was wanted on a number of warrants and the name he had given them was that of the passenger. The driver had been prohibited from driving, so was using the passenger's name instead while the passenger assumed the driver's name in an attempt to help him avoid trouble. As a result, both were charged with obstruction and the driver's warrant issues were cleared up before he was released with a Jan. 28 court date to answer to the new charges.
A 28-year-old man was arrested and charged with impaired driving and driving while his blood-alcohol content was over .08 per cent on Christmas Day after police received a call regarding a possible impaired driver heading toward Estevan.
The man now has a Jan. 28 court date.
