Thefts of vehicles and break-ins at businesses continued to be a problem for Osoyoos RCMP in the first quarter of this year.

Overall, the number of criminal cases handled by police increased by 15 per cent over the same period in 2014.

Those problems were highlighted in the Osoyoos section of the recently released quarterly report of the RCMP in Penticton and the South Okanagan. The report was prepared for the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS).

There were 11 reported break-ins at businesses and 18 thefts of vehicles during the period from January to March. Both of these represent increases from the previous October-December 2014 quarter, when there were 10 break-ins at businesses and just nine thefts of vehicles.

The report compares crime statistics in each quarter going back to April 2014, so it doesn’t provide a view of long-term trends. Nonetheless, most other crimes decreased or remained comparable to previous quarters.

There were no reported instances in the first quarter of such crimes as robbery, sexual offences, shoplifting, arson and drug trafficking or drug production.

Not surprisingly, given the number of summer visitors, the highest volume of crime occurred in the July-September 2014 quarter. During that time there were 19 reported assaults, compared to only three in the first three months this year.

The most reported crime in the statistics for this year is mischief, which includes vandalism. There were 21 cases of mischief, which nonetheless is down significantly from the last half of 2014 when 89 cases were reported.

Thefts from vehicles continued to be a problem, with 10 cases reported in the first three months this year, but this too is down significantly from previous quarters. In the busy July-September 2014 quarter, there were 44 reports of thefts from vehicles.

In total during the first quarter this year, Osoyoos RCMP responded to 513 calls for service, up from 486 calls in the same period last year.

Sgt. Kevin Schur left the Osoyoos Detachment on the final day of the first quarter and Cpl. Jason Bayda has been the acting commander since then.

A new commander, Sgt. Randy Bosch, is expected to take over in June.

RICHARD McGUIRE

Osoyoos Times