With the exception of vandalism and theft from vehicles, Port Moody has experienced a drop in crime, Port Moody Police statistics show.
The local police force saw cases of violent crime drop nearly 6% last year, compared to 2016, including assaults and robbery.
Assaults dropped by 11% from 90 to 80, for example, and criminal investigations for crimes against persons dropped from 159 to 151, according to PMPD, prompting comments that the city continues to enjoy a reputation of safety and quality of life.
“I know the officers and community work hard at keeping Port Moody one of the safest places in Metro Vancouver and the province, and it shows in not only the crime statistics but also the quality of life we enjoy here as a result,” stated PoMo police chief Dave Fleugel in a press release.
The clearance rate for the solving of crime is also one of the highest in B.C., according to PMPD, 42% compared to 32% for the rest of the province in 2016.
Meanwhile, property crimes remained relatively flat last year with an increase of just 2% compared to 2016.
But it’s thefts from automobiles that continue to plague the city, climbing from 219 to 224 (2%) while mischief to property, or vandalism, rose about 10% or 136 compared to 123 in 2016.
While collisions have dropped 2%, traffic enforcement is up, too, with the number of people stopped for infractions increasing by 10%.
“We know people do not like to get stopped for a motor vehicle infraction, but we are asking people to slow down and obey the speed limits, and also to stop texting and driving. Traffic related concerns, often speeding in residential and school areas, continue to be brought to our attention, and our community will need to keep our attention focused here.”
The picture of petty crime and traffic enforcement is a long way from events six years ago, when a rally was held in the city by citizens worried about a spate of shootings.
In 2012, two high profile shootings took place in Port Moody that were part of an ongoing gang war that dates back to 2010, and took many other lives in the region, as well.
In June, 2012, Randy Naicker, one of the founders of the Independent Soldiers, was shot to death outside the Starbucks on St. Johns Street in PoMo and the week before, 35-year-old Gurbinder 'Bin' Toor was shot outside the Port Moody rec centre and later died in hospital. Unbeknownst to Naicker, a tracking device had been placed on his SUV, according to a report by Kim Bolan of the Vancouver Sun.
A third victim, a Port Moody man, was also killed that year and while a rally against crime was held, it was pointed out at the time that the issues that prompted the murders started well outside the city’s borders and were targeted shootings of people who happened to be in Port Moody at the time they were killed.
According to VPD, the two gang groups facing off in retaliatory killings were prompted to do so by the murder of gangster Gurmit Dhak in Burnaby in 2010. Port Moody gangster Jonathan Bacon was also killed in a gangland shooting as part of the internecine violence. His killers pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and conspiracy charges and were recently sentenced.
