Local Mounties unveil “See Something, Say Something” campaign to boost crime reporting

Prince George RCMP is launching a new campaign aimed at helping residents feel confident and empowered to report crime to local police.

While recent crime statistics in Prince George indicate crime is down, RCMP are concerned a contributing factor is many incidents are not being reported to police.

“Recently, we have seen a trend of videos and photos that show crimes being committed, which are getting posted to local social media sites instead of being properly reported to police. This limits our capacity to investigate the incident, identify suspects and prevent further crime from occurring. We hope this campaign will serve as an important reminder that reporting incidents directly to police is the most effective way to keep our community safe,” stated Superintendent Darin Rappel, Detachment Commander for Prince George RCMP.

The campaign called “See Something, Say Something” is as simple as that: if you see a crime occurring, either in person or via your video surveillance, police need you to report it.

“Prince George Fire Rescue and the City’s bylaw services team rely on reports from residents,” added City of Prince George bylaw services manager, Kent MacNeill, “everyone in our community has a role to play in keeping Prince George safe – whether that’s reporting crimes, bylaw infractions, or fires to the correct authority when you see them happening. In some cases, complicated files require more time to address, however, residents can be assured that City crews work closely with RCMP to resolve issues related to public safety.”

During November, Mounties and other local partners will be providing information to residents and businesses about the best ways to report crime to police and how residents and police can work together to address different types of crime.

“Having better data allows us to better serve our community through intelligence-led policing. This includes areas to target with our proactive patrols and where crime trends are occurring,” stated Corporal Jennifer Cooper

“In turn, this allows police to effectively deploy our resources to where they are the most needed.”