There’s a growing concern from Moncton’s north-end residents over reported incidents of crime.
Moncton City Councillors Bryan Butler and Councillor Dave Steeves say their ward 3 is made up of around 28, 000 people and for the past two years, they have been seeing concerns expressed on social media about increased crime, including break-ins and theft. They decided it was time to hear from the residents.
A public meeting will be held Wednesday, February 7th at 6:15 pm at Legends.
“I think it’s time to get together as a town hall and ask people their views. It’s different than it was two years ago or three years ago. The RCMP are going to be there, By-law is going to be there, and we’re going to talk about Citizens on Patrol. We just want to give people a chance to vent a little bit, if there is a reason to. It’s all about public safety,” Butler says.
Last year, residents dealt with mailboxes being broken into, and videos from home security cams have surfaced on social media including individuals trying to gain access to cars and homes, and stolen parcels.
This meeting is open to all residents in the north end, both in Wards 3 and 4.
“Maybe we need extra patrols, maybe we need more police officers. This will be determined after the meeting. The residents are the stakeholders here. We’ll hear from the residents and we’ll go from there and see what we can be done,” Butler adds.
Butler previously served as a police officer in the community, and he feels things have changed since then.
“When we see these people that are, strung out on drugs, for instance. Drugs are not cheap, it’s not free. So, if you’re not working, there are only a couple of avenues. One of them is to sell drugs or steal things to get drugs. People aren’t stealing from cars, loonies, and toonies and putting them into RRSPs. They’re chasing that high all the time, and they’ll do what they have to do,” Butler says.
Doors for the public meeting open at 6 pm.
