B.C. minister and Dawson Creek mayor discuss rise in violent crime

DAWSON CREEK, B.C. — B.C.’s Minister of Public Safety and the mayor of Dawson Creek had a discussion last week about the rise in violent crime the community has been experiencing.

“I am aware of the increase in crime in Dawson Creek and have been informed that police are coordinating in the region to address this increase in firearm violence,” said Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth in a statement.

“The RCMP and the province continue to align our resources to ensure that people in the community feel safe and are safe. If a person believes they are being threatened or at risk of a violent incident, call 911 and report it to the police so they can investigate and help keep you safe.”

The Dawson Creek RCMP has been investigating the increase in reports of shots fired throughout the city over the last several weeks, with assistance from the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit-BC’s uniform gang enforcement team.

Dawson Creek Mayor Darcy Dober says he doesn’t believe there have been further incidents in the city since additional police resources have arrived.

“There’s definitely a large RCMP presence in the community, which seems to have helped subside some of the stuff that was going on,” Dober said.

“There’s a lot of open investigations, so not only the resources that we see in the community, there’s the resources helping on the back end of things to investigate. They’re doing everything they can right now.”

The mayor wants to thank the Dawson Creek RCMP for their work.

Dober says he’s glad the province has provided additional police resources but thinks the government should examine why these communities are getting to this point and what needs to be changed to move forward.

Farnworth says the province’s Safer Communities Action Plan is strengthening enforcement to keep repeat violent offenders off the streets.

The province has set up 12 Repeat Violent Offending Intervention Initiative (ReVOII) hubs, which are structured to meet the needs of their communities and surrounding areas.

As of December 7th, 341 people have been identified for the ReVOII program, 28 of whom have been selected for the Prince George hub, which serves Dawson Creek.

The ministry says ReVOII is already starting to make a difference, with police, prosecutors and probation officers supporting Prince George’s hub and surrounding communities.

For example, the ministry says an individual released on bail will be returned to custody in less than 24 hours for breaching a court-ordered condition and will remain in jail. 

Many politicians, community members and more have raised concerns about the province’s unofficial “catch and release” system, where offenders have been put back on the streets much quicker. 

The provincial government has provided a multi-year investment of approximately $230 million to the RCMP to fill vacancies for specialized investigative teams.

Another aspect the province is exploring is establishing Situation Tables to address the root causes of crime. The provincial government is currently working with the City of Fort St. John to create a Situation Table.