Property crime has seen a substantial rise in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows in the month of July.
A total of 43 break and enters occurred in July compared to 25 in June, in Maple Ridge. This is the highest number of break and enters this year, in a single month. Theft from auto also saw an increase with 70 instances as opposed to 60 in the previous month. Last year, there were 2,078 property crimes in Maple Ridge, including theft of auto, theft from auto, break and enter and mischief whereas this year, there already have been 1,817 property crimes with five months left until the year ends.
In Pitt Meadows, July had two more cases of break and enter than June, while crimes categorized under mischief, went up to 31, highest this year. Property crimes in 2021 for the city have already surpassed those in 2020. All through last year, there were 304 property crimes in Pitt Meadows whereas this year, by the end of July, there already have been 352 property crimes with five more months until the end of the year.
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Sgt. Amanda Harnett of the Ridge Meadows RCMP explained why property crimes occur and what residents could do about it.
“Most theft of auto and property crime is opportunistic in nature. The number one thing citizens can do to reduce being victimized is remove any opportunity which may entice criminal behaviour. This includes keeping valuables out of sight in your car or better yet, remove them altogether. Additionally, a simple habit to get into at bedtime every night is ensuring garage doors and house windows are closed and pressing the lock button on your car’s key-fob,” she said.
In July, crimes against persons also went up in both the cities.
In Maple Ridge, assault was high, with 69 instances as opposed to 59 last month.
To get a detailed look at the crime data, residents of Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows can now visit the Ridge Meadows RCMP dashboard hub - https://rmpolicedashboards-mapleridge.hub.arcgis.com/
RELATED: Ridge Meadows RCMP sharing crime data online
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