In the past few weeks, St. Albert has seen a sharp increase in theft compared to previous years, particularly from motor vehicles and around commercial centres. It's a trend the RCMP says can be linked to hard economic times.
The St. Albert Crime Map as of Dec. 4, 2024 paints a troubling story for residents. Over the 14-day tally, reported thefts over/under $5,000 reached 48, compared to 19 on Dec. 6, 2023 and 14 on Dec. 7, 2022. As well, 53 thefts from motor vehicles were reported during the two-week tally as of Dec. 4, 2024, compared to only 11 in 2023 and 10 in 2022.
So what could be driving such a high increase in crime?
While RCMP Const. MJ Burroughs stopped short of linking economics to why crime as a whole is on the rise, she said the financial pressures can lead to people turning to crime to make ends meet.
“We’ve seen an increase in thefts unders and overs ($5,000) regarding shoplifting, liquor theft,” Burroughs said. “Although we can't predict why crime is increasing, we can say that because of the cost of living that has substantially increased over time, many Canadians, including Albertans, are suffering from that.”
“We had noted that shoplifting was substantially higher, and within shoplifting, box stores and grocery stores and liquor stores were predominantly the large quantities that we were seeing the larger amounts coming from,” she said. “And then we also had a series of locker thefts from community gyms and services like Servus Place and recreation complexes.”
In a three-month comparison of shoplifting statistics provided via email, the St. Albert Municipal Detachment saw 76 shoplifting offences from Jan. 1 2024 to March 31, 2024. Both 2023 and 2022 saw 37 offences over the same time period.
In a news release dated May 2, 2024, Burroughs commented on the increase in locker thefts. In it, she noted between January and April 2024, the St. Albert RCMP "received 34 locker related theft complaints." These complaints saw 25 thefts under $5,000.
She also pointed to an increase in population that can lead to higher crime rates. The 2024 Municipal Census reported St. Albert’s population has grown to 72,316, an increase of 6,234 people since the last census in 2018, which is an average annual growth rate of 1.51 per cent.
“Our population is larger than 2023 and 2022. And of course with that, Edmonton’s growing as well. And we know that criminals know no boundaries. And because we are a bedroom community to the city, we do see crossover of stuff coming into St. Albert,” she said.
As for Edmonton, a 2021 Census of Population geographic summary by Statistics Canada listed the population as 1,010,899, roughly a 3.83 per cent increase from its 2019 population of 972,223 recorded in their last municipal census.
Burroughs said the St. Albert RCMP crime analysts are working with crime analysts in Edmonton and other RCMP detachments in the surrounding areas, looking at trends to identify whether these increases in crimes are because of prolific offenders.
“We do see some prolific offenders that they’re working on and that have been arrested. And then, of course, we have people that might have just taken up, deciding that they don’t have groceries on the table and need to steal something,” she said.
To protect themselves or make themselves less vulnerable, the RCMP has their standard tips for residents to help keep themselves from being a victim of these kinds of crimes.
“As far as the theft from motor vehicles, no valuables whatsoever should be stored in the vehicle. No extra set of keys, no registration documents identifying who you are because then a property like that can lead to identity theft,” she said.
She also discussed the city’s 9 pm routine, which tells residents to do the following every night at 9 pm:
- Remove valuables from your vehicle and ensure it’s locked, windows are closed, and if possible, parked in a garage.
- Close all garage windows and lock any garage doors, especially those leading into your house.
- Keep your vehicle registration and insurance documents secure. The documents can be used to commit other crimes.
- Check and lock all house doors and shut all windows.
- Turn on an exterior light.
- Close and lock your fence gate.
- Lock your shed.
- Put away bikes and toys in your yard.
- Park in the garage instead of the street, if possible.
Burroughs said when the RCMP sees different crime trends they "try to support them with extra patrols and different things." She also pointed to the other crime prevention and reduction initiatives they do throughout the year for prevention and education. On Nov. 28, 2024, the RCMP outlined their Christmas Grinch Initiative, which saw them patrol "commercial store parking lots to ensure all vehicle valuables are removed or not in plain view and the doors are locked."
To see the most current crime map, you can go to https://stalbert.ca/city/maps/crime/ .
