As part of the City’s priority of a Safe & Resilient community, staff have been reviewing data from a variety of sources to highlight trends in Penticton.
The Penticton RCMP are a valuable member of the Public Safety and Partnership team and continue to contribute to the City’s priority of a Safe & Resilient community.
The review of five-year averages of RCMP data in several key categories shows a continued positive trend.
Break and Enter to Business is 32 per cent below the five-year average. Break and Enter to residence is 13 per cent below the five-year average, while Break and Enter Other is eight per cent above the previous five-year average.
In a report to council from the RCMP, it says: “This quarter saw a series of break-ins to apartment common areas, particularly parkades. The Penticton RCMP became aware of a prolific offender from the lower mainland, who recently relocated to the area. This offender was arrested in late December 2024 and is currently in custody, facing charges in relation to 10 property related offences, and remains a suspect in several others.”
Reviewing the five-year average (2019-2024) Theft from Vehicle is 45 per cent below the previous five-year year average. And the five-year average (2019-2024) for Auto Theft the city is eight per cent below the five-year average.
“During Q4, several multi-jurisdictional auto theft offenders were active in the Penticton area which caused a significant spike in the calls for service. Working in conjunction with other regional RCMP detachments many offenders believed to be contributing to this trend are currently in custody,” reads the report.
The Penticton Crime Reduction Unit prioritizes Repeat Offenders not only within the municipality but works collaboratively with the regional detachments of the South Okanagan Similkameen to prioritize those believed to be responsible for Auto Theft in the region.
The report also notes police remained dedicated to proactive hot spot patrols during Q4, conducting 232 hours of proactive patrols in identified crime hotspots throughout the city. Since the inception of the “hot spot” crime reduction strategy (April 2024) frontline officers have dedicated 626 hours of proactive patrols in identified hot spot crime areas within the city. As a result of dedicated hours in these “hot spot,” data has shown that this approach has consistently decreased crime in these impacted areas.
In terms of Bylaw Services, in 2024, there were 10,696 service interactions, including calls for service and proactive patrols, compared to 8,211calls for service in 2023. Calls for service are complaint-driven, while proactive patrols are initiated by officers without a complaint.
In 2024, most calls for service to the Bylaw Department were related to the Safe Public Spaces Bylaw – with approximately 63 per cent of total calls being social in nature. The Department received numerous calls regarding encampments and wellness checks. Traffic and nuisance property/good neighbour concerns were also significant and will be a focus of our initiatives in 2025.
The full Q4 reports for the RCMP and Public Safety and Partnerships are available at www.penticton.ca/agendas
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