Source: OPP
The Mayor of Meaford says the municipality could consider looking to the OPP for a higher level of service following a recent string of thefts.
Nothing’s been approved by council, but Mayor Ross Kentner says many residents have taken to social media to voice anger and fear following an OPP investigation into a series of break and enters in Meaford last month, when a few bicycles were stolen from properties.
“Some of these thefts are very blatant. One bicycle was stolen from a second story balcony. That tells you that the next step might be to be inside your apartment, it’s very scary stuff,” says Kentner.
Council heard from resident Cyrus Irani during a meeting on July 22, claiming he was one of the victims who had his bike stolen.
“I was a victim of the increasing crime in this community. My bike, along with four of my neighbours, were stolen. I reported it to the OPP and I filed a report,” says Irani. “I talked to a few friends and they all had their bikes stolen. We quickly pieced it together through some research that these criminals were operating out of a few locations in town.”
Irani questioned council as to what can be done to combat the climbing crime rate in the area.
Kentner says he has reached out to OPP headquarters about crime in the community and CAO Kymm Buckham is set to meet with provincial police.
“Certainly there has been an escalation in the last couple of weeks, but it has been going on more consistently in the last couple of years and our neighbours also see that,” says Buckham. “It has already been acknowledged that the OPP and us, we have to work together on both prevention as well as a sense of security.”
Kentner says one of the things council could do is ask the OPP for a higher level of policing service in the community, but there are currently no immediate plans to potentially enhance these services.
“I think we would have to consider what would work against this kind of thievery. It might be more patrols at night, there is any number of things that can possibly be done to step things up,” says Kentner.