Rounding up a few bad apples is making a difference in Vernon’s crime scene.
The RCMP’s third quarter report shows an 8.26 per cent reduction in Criminal Code cases between July and September and a 17.3 per cent drop in property crime.
Supt. Reg Burgess believes the plummeting crime rate is a result of targeted policing.
“We are getting more efficient with our prolific offender team,” he said.
“Our general duty constables have taken the program to heart and they are doing curfew checks and checking that (court) conditions are being met.”
The goal is to consistently monitor those individuals who are considered career criminals.
“It’s basic, simple, looking at the statistics and who is causing the trouble,” said Burgess, adding that five to 10 per cent of the offenders who are prolific can account for 40 to 50 per cent of the crime in Vernon.
To date, 23 prolific offenders have been identified in Vernon and seven are in custody, three have moved out of the community and one file has been closed because the individual has changed his habits.
A total of 12 individuals remain in the community under RCMP observation.
The serious crimes unit was busy during the quarter, including with a case of child porn and child luring, the suspicious death of an infant, aggravated assault involving an infant and two homicides.
Beyond crime, the Vernon RCMP have been focused on local roads to ensure safety.
During the third quarter, officers initiated 38 road check-stops, a 58 per cent increase compared to last year.
