Energeticcity.ca Weekly Review: Pressure of Repeated Break-Ins

Welcome to the next installment of Weekly Review, the series where we mention what’s going on behind the scenes and showcase the previous week’s top stories.

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Behind the Scenes

Spencer here,

I hope you’ve been having a great weekend so far. While you’re enjoying a nice hot or cold beverage on your patio or in your living room, I hope you’ll have a chance to give my latest investigative article about property crime a read-through.

In part two of Disrupting the Peace, I look at how businesses in Fort St. John are being impacted by repeated property crime offences.

Something I found interesting is that many businesses say they don’t report many of their thefts to the police, meaning these offences aren’t included in RCMP statistics, which is how governments assign funding to police detachments. The Fort St John RCMP  said its exploring options to set up a regional crime prevention unit aimed at addressing trans-jurisdictional crime seen in the Peace and over the Alberta border, which is what the detachment said is behind a bulk of property crime offences here in Fort St. John.

Businesses in the city are still feeling the financial pressure from these crimes. Executive director of the Fort St. John & District Chamber of Commerce, Kathleen Connolly, said there are a number of businesses, particularly small ones, that are reaching their limit and shutting their doors. Businesses bearing the costs of repeated property crime offences are also having to contend with their insurance costs increasing if they utilize their coverage to repair damages or cover their losses.

Click here to give the story a read, and let me know what you think!  You can send me your thoughts, feedback, or story tips at spencer@energeticcity.ca If you want more investigative articles such as this, consider becoming a Supporter today.

Top Stories of the Week

It’s always interesting to see what the readers of Energeticcity.ca are most interested in the region. Sometimes it’s a big decision that will impact property taxes, and sometimes it’s a new restaurant coming to town. Here are the top stories for the week of July 16 to 22, 2023:

1. Famous Potato Tour: from Idaho passed through the Peace region earlier this week. The Big Idaho Potato Truck is on its 10th cross-country tour, which started in 2012 as a celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Idaho Potato Commission.
2. Fort Nelson Man Fired: over rescuing a baby moose. The man went to social media to respond to allegations made by his former employer to the media after he was fired for rescuing the moose calf.
3. Two Fort Nelson Residents Charged with Fraud: of over $5,000, and one has pled guilty. The next joint appearance is on September 25th for disposition and a pre-sentence report.

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