COLD LAKE - City of Cold Lake council was given an in-depth look into the city's safety landscape at a recent council meeting, where Cold Lake RCMP presented the 2023 annual report.
The report delved into crime statistics, policing boundaries, and key trends, shedding light on the challenges and priorities facing law enforcement in the area.
At the March 26 regular council meeting, Staff Sgt. Wes Bensmiller, the detachment commander for Cold Lake, stood before the council to provide a detailed overview of the past year.
Bensmiller outlined the policing boundaries covered by the detachment, including the City of Cold Lake, portions of the MD of Bonnyville, Cold Lake First Nations, and Elizabeth Metis Settlement.
He noted the total personnel of the detachment, which stood at 50 last year, included 36 members, 11 support staff, and three Victim Support Unit (VSU) personnel. The detachment grew in 2023, with the addition of two provincial positions and one municipal position.
In terms of calls for service, Bensmiller stated, "In 2023 we had 11,606 calls for service, so that's total municipal and provincial calls.” He highlighted that municipal calls were up by 2.3 per cent and provincial calls up by 0.6 per cent compared to the previous year.
Discussing crime statistics, Bensmiller pointed out, “Our total criminal code offenses are up 17 per cent." He highlighted an increase in persons crimes by 15 per cent, property crime offences were up by 24 per cent, and there was a decrease of five per cent in other criminal code offenses.
Bensmiller explained that property crimes, including break and enters and theft of motor vehicles, were particularly concerning, leading to initiatives like Operation Cold Start to address the issues.
He also mentioned the detachment's efforts in offender management, community engagement, and crime reduction strategies. He announced an upcoming open house on May 11 to engage with the public and discuss community safety initiatives.
"Cold Lake is a busy detachment. It's probably one of the busiest detachments in the Eastern Alberta District." He emphasized the importance of having experienced members and strategic policing efforts to address crime effectively.
Bensmiller concluded the presentation by looking ahead.
“We're going to continue with various different techniques to target drug traffickers in the community, work on some joint force projects with some other units that we have at our disposal and continue our investigations and hold everybody accountable.”
After the presentation, council expressed their appreciation for the work being done. Council thanked Bensmiller for the informative presentation.
