Regina Mayor Michael Fougere says it could be time to look at penalizing victims of auto theft if vehicles are left unlocked and running.
“We need to get people’s attention.”
READ MORE: 2 charged in Regina auto theft investigation
However, SGI said there have been conversations in the past regarding the issue, but at this time it is not proposing any financial penalties, either in fines or insurance consequences.
Get daily National news
In 2018, there were 490 more auto thefts than in 2017 — an increase of 51.8 per cent.
“It’s not about blaming the victim because we will continue to arrest and hold the offender accountable,” said Evan Bray, Regina police chief.
“There are things people can do to lower the likelihood of their vehicle being stolen.”
Bray said locking your vehicle while running is just one way to help prevent vehicle theft, but also key is focusing on the likely root of the problem — addiction.
“It’s not just about joyriding anymore. It’s about using them in the commission of an offence. Why are they committing offences? Maybe it’s to fuel an addiction,” Bray said.
“If we can deal with the addictions, then they don’t have the need to steal a car and commit a crime.”
Bray said police are reworking their auto-theft strategy which will be presented in the next couple of months.
Comments
Comments closed.
Due to the sensitive and/or legal subject matter of some of the content on globalnews.ca, we reserve the ability to disable comments from time to time.
Please see our Commenting Policy for more.