Kelowna councillor Ron Cannan is questioning whether the city香蕉视频直播檚 crime rate is truly dropping or if residents are simply reporting fewer incidents.
At Monday香蕉视频直播檚 council meeting, Inspector Chris Goebel, Kelowna RCMP Acting Superintendent, noted that property crime declined last year. Business break-ins fell by 19 per cent, and bike thefts were down 16 per cent from 2023.
Cannan shared his experience calling the RCMP香蕉视频直播檚 non-emergency line last month. He was on hold for 10 minutes before the call was dropped. When he called back, he waited another eight minutes.
香蕉视频直播淚t香蕉视频直播檚 good to see the crime stats trending downward, but could it be crime is really reduced or has the public lost confidence in the system and stopped reporting crime, or possibly a combination of the two?香蕉视频直播�
Goebel said it was the first he香蕉视频直播檇 heard about people having challenges getting through on the non-emergency line, and that he hoped that the public had not lost confidence.
香蕉视频直播淚 would encourage the public to continue to call, but I would also encourage the public that if they are calling and not able to get through we need to know about that - because that informs our ability to respond to it.香蕉视频直播�
The showed Kelowna香蕉视频直播檚 Crime Severity Index (CSI) dropped seven per cent from 2023 to 2024. The CSI measures crime levels based on police-reported data, factoring in both the number and severity of incidents.
Coun. Loyal Wooldridge expressed concern about an increase in media reports highlighting crime and violent incidents involving youth. Goebel said RCMP youth officers and the Community Safety Unit are monitoring the situation.
香蕉视频直播淲hich have been occurring mostly around the mall and the downtown core,香蕉视频直播� he said. 香蕉视频直播淲e are seeing a number of youth carrying weapons such as bear spray, brass knuckles and most recently imitation firearms.香蕉视频直播�
Goebel added that RCMP has identified multiple youth involved in these activities and is working with the school district, community partners, and families to intervene before situations escalate. The detachment is also looking to add two more officers to the youth unit and increase bike and foot patrols.
Council recently passed a bylaw restricting the sale of bear spray to anyone under 18 after a staff report revealed an 80 per cent increase in police files involving bear spray since 2019. Youth-related cases rose from six per cent to 19 percent.
The 2024 report also showed that while property crime is down, other serious crimes have risen. Robberies increased by 15 percent, assaults by six percent, and reports of intimate partner violence and sexual offences remain 17 percent higher than in 2022. One of the biggest jumps was in arson cases, which spiked 54 percent from 2023.
