As companies in Kelowna, B.C.’s downtown core attain their breaking level, the RCMP is breaking its silence on mounting crime issues.
“I acknowledge it has taken a couple of days for us to talk publicly. That delay was intentional,” stated Kelowna RCMP Supt. Chris Goebel.
“When public security and public confidence are at stake, it’s essential that we converse primarily based on full and correct data.”
Goebel made the feedback at a information convention on the RCMP detachment on Tuesday within the wake of a rising variety of enterprise house owners coming ahead and highlighting the escalating challenges they’re coping with.
Regardless of information saying in any other case, enterprise house owners say break and enters, thefts and property crime are by means of the roof and that they concern their security, and that of their workers and clients, is compromised.
“Police statistics are primarily based on reported crimes,” Goebel stated. “What we are able to say clearly is that this: reported break and enters are down in comparison with the identical interval final 12 months, on the similar time social dysfunction is up and that distinction issues.”
Goebel acknowledged that security is just not primarily based on information.
“Individuals don’t expertise security as a statistic,” Goebel stated. “They expertise it as damaged home windows, fires, repeated disrupted behaviour and a rising sense that unacceptable conduct is being normalized.”
Get breaking Nationwide information
For information impacting Canada and around the globe, join breaking information alerts delivered on to you after they occur.
Metropolis officers had been additionally readily available on the information convention, the place an motion plan was outlined.
“We’re listening, we’re appearing and we’re very dedicated to make sure the town is protected,” stated Darren Caul, neighborhood security director for the Metropolis of Kelowna.
A number of the fast measures being carried out embrace an enhanced metropolis bylaw and police presence to assist scale back crime and social dysfunction.
That features elevated RCMP foot and automobile patrols.
Whereas police gained’t elaborate on what number of extra officers will probably be patrolling the streets, Goebel stated their elevated presence will probably be noticeable.
Caul stated the town can be boosting funding for the Downtown Kelowna Affiliation’s ‘Pink Shirt’ volunteer program, which gives front-line safety and offers with lower-priority calls to RCMP and bylaw enforcement.
Caul added the town has additionally began to interact instantly with companies in a brand new initiative the town is asking ‘Knock and Discuss’.
“Knocking on their doorways and listening to their issues, sharing sources and dealing collectively on concern that matter to them now,” Caul stated when describing the brand new initiative.
The brand new measures come as a aid to Wendy Munyanyi, who owns the store Mary-Claris Hair Extensions and Magnificence.
“I believe if we now have extra presence on the road, it should actually, actually assist,” Munyanyi informed International Information.
She, like so lots of her counterparts, has needed to set up bards to guard her store within the wake of repeated break and enters and thefts.
In a single case, suspects made off with greater than $30,000 in hair extensions.
“They got here with luggage, like luggage and took it,” Munyanyi stated.
However with addictions a giant a part of the issue, the brand new measures introduced might solely go to date.
“We acknowledge that we’re a part of the answer as enforcement, nonetheless, there’s a major hole in the mean time,” Goebel stated. “There’s inadequate therapy choices for individuals.”
© 2026 International Information, a division of Corus Leisure Inc.
