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Rural Crime Watch Association launches in Saskatchewan

Click to play video: 'Rural, urban municipality associations support Rural Crime Watch group'
Rural, urban municipality associations support Rural Crime Watch group
WATCH: Saskatchewan's associations for both urban and rural municipalities have partnered to create a Rural Crime Watch group. SARM President Ray Orb joins Global News Morning to share how the group will work with RCMP to reduce rural crime – Nov 24, 2021

An initiative to prevent and reduce crime was launched by the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) and Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM).

On November 22, 2021, the Saskatchewan Rural Crime Watch Association officially launched in the province. Members of this initiative include SARM, SUMA, Rural Crime Watch members, the RCMP and the Ministry of Corrections and Policing to prevent and reduce criminal behaviour.

“It’s a way to better communicate between the rural municipalities and other organizations and the RCMP [to] be a second set of eyes out in the rural areas,” said Ray Orb, president of SARM. “Reporting crime, receiving information also from the RCMP on areas where there is crime…we think this is a valuable tool for rural municipalities.”
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Orb said crime watch groups have been proven successful in reducing theft of equipment and grain, vandalism, break and entering. The role of members in the crime watch groups consist of observing, recording and immediately reporting any suspicious and unusual activity to their local RCMP detachment, or 911 for emergencies.

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Currently, there are 22 rural municipalities who have joined the initiative, but the association is urging others to join the Saskatchewan Rural Crime Watch Association to make it safe for everyone.

“We’re seeing some property crimes on the rise in the smaller communities and in rural Saskatchewan,” said Rodger Hayward, the president of SUMA. “Our province is so vast. It’s so hard for the RCMP to be everywhere where they need to be. So, this [initiative] will help the RCMP solve and prevent crime.”

Hayward, who is also mayor of Naicam, says today’s launch is only the beginning. He adds SUMA is looking forward to building the association — adding president, vice-president roles for the crime watch organization.

“We’re really happy to partner with SARM, I think it’s a great initiative that our two organizations can really do well on,” said Hayward.

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