OLDS — The Community Lending Shelf (CLS), which accepts donations of gently used clothing in a bin behind the Olds United Church, suffered a rash of thefts this year.
CLS officials began noticing the thefts in February. Things got so bad that on March 25, they announced a decision to temporarily close and lock the bin. However, a new specially designed bin to thwart thefts was installed March 27 and since then, the stealing has stopped, CLS director Lucinda Watkins said during an interview.
But while it was going on, that thievery frustrated Watkins and fellow CLS officials.
Watkins was especially frustrated when they came across a suspect “red-handed” taking clothing out of a bin. They got photos as well as a licence plate number, according to Watkins.
Watkins said on March 21, she reported the rash of thefts and provided the proof they had to Olds RCMP. After a while, when no apparent progress had occurred, she contacted RCMP again.
"A day-and-a-half. That’s how long we went without our bin getting robbed again," she said.
"We got to a point where we locked the bin and weren’t taking donations because we were beside ourselves. I was there five times a day trying to retain some of our donations and had some hope that the police would catch her faster."
Watkins said she was told by that officer that the CLS thefts were a low priority – that it’s not a persons crime and that Olds RCMP are short-staffed.
Alarmed and frustrated by that response, Watkins conveyed her concerns to Mayor Judy Dahl who contacted Olds RCMP Staff Sgt. Warren Wright.
Wright says he met with Watkins for about 40 minutes on March 28.
He sympathized with Watkins’ frustration but said theft cases can’t always be solved as quickly as a victim may want or expect.
“It’s just a misunderstanding. She expected us to solve it within the same day and you know, it might take two weeks to solve," Wright said, adding that occasionally, a few cases are never solved.
He said Olds RCMP do take all complaints – including the CLS theft complaint seriously, but it may take a while, as the detachment can be pretty busy.
“We typically get 10 to 20 files a day in a 24-hour day," Wright said. "We have to prioritize our work, just like you have to prioritize your work.”
He said the CLS case is definitely being investigated – along with many other cases.
“I’m not saying it’s a low priority issue," he said. "What I’m saying is there’s other instances where files come in that take higher priority; for example if it’s a domestic (dispute) or if it’s a mental health issue or if it’s a violent crime against a person or it’s a child abuse case.
"(That’s) the stuff that kind of takes our attention away sometimes from the property crime like mischief, vandalism, theft, theft under $5,000, that kind of stuff. But we always get to it.”
Wright said Olds RCMP are not short-staffed. He did confirm that the detachment is short a sargeant, but said that person is expected to arrive this summer.
Watkins said after her discussion with Wright she does appreciate that it takes time to solve cases, but all the same, her discussion with the constable did leave her upset.
“We just had high hopes that calling it in would mean she was caught,” she said.
Watkins noted that in February, CLS officials had even left a note for the thief.
It said, “let us know how we can help? Here's our phone number: what size do you need? Because we sure don’t want anybody to go without. Our goal is to help. That is the whole point,” she wrote.
