REGINA -- The COVID-19 pandemic has not resulted in a drastic decrease in crimes in Regina, but the new circumstances around the city have contributed to a change in the frequency of some types of crime.
The Regina Police Service said since Saskatchewan’s public health order was issued on March 17, it has seen an increase in calls about people gathering and unwanted guests. There has also been an increase in domestic conflict related calls.
The service has noticed a decrease in calls for missing people, break and enters, shoplifting, theft and vehicle accidents.
“Crime is still happening in this city,” Elizabeth Popowich of Regina Police Service said. “While the pandemic has taken a lot of the public’s attention, we still have to work on all of the issues everyday because the causes for crime are still there everyday.”
Amber Knowles lives in Regina’s Cathedral neighbourhood and her bike was stolen from inside her yard on Friday. Her backyard has a tall fence with latched gates at the front and back. Knowles said she is bothered that someone would be so brazen to come into her yard.
“I don’t know if it happened at night or if it happened during the day, but it happened and I didn’t see anyone doing it,” Knowles said. “Just know that there was someone who came in here with it being so isolated, its a very unsettling feeling.
Jacquelyn Reslein lives in Gardiner Park in East Regina. On the night of March 25, a vehicle in her driveway was rummaged through twice. Reslein caught the incident on her security cameras.
“We saw one guy and a few minutes later we saw him take off on a bike as fast as he could and another guy came around the corner about thirty seconds later,” Reslein said. “It was literally within six minutes of each other they were both in our vehicle.”
Reslein said the vehicle wasn’t locked because there was nothing valuable inside. Reslein said after years of dealing with break-ins, she knows a broken window isn’t cheap.
“They are invading our space,” Reslein said. “It’s not theirs to go into. It’s what we’ve worked hard for, and I wanted to show other people that they are going through vehicles every single night.”
