SUNDRE – Several incidents of assault, including one case with pending charges, a report of dangerous driving that remains under investigation, as well as a case involving overseas fraud were among the files logged by local Mounties over the past week.
From Friday, Jan. 12 to Thursday, Jan. 18, the Sundre RCMP detachment received a total of 30 calls, reported Sgt. Trent Sperlie.
While police responded to four reports of assault, three of the situations were resolved without charges being laid, the sergeant said on the morning of Friday, Jan. 19 during a phone interview.
The incident involving pending charges occurred outside of town and stemmed from a domestic dispute, and as such Sperlie told the Albertan police would not be providing further details due to the nature of the call and to protect the victim.
The ongoing dangerous driving investigation comes as a result of a report that a motorist was operating their vehicle in a “very aggressive” manner and tailgating another driver, he said.
“It sounds almost like a little bit of a road rage incident, where one vehicle following the other was driving really close,” he said, adding police are familiar with the alleged offender.
The case involving overseas fraud was not the typical con such as the more commonly known lonely hearts or concerned grandparents scams in which fraudsters carefully foster a relationship online with a victim before asking for money, or when scammers cold call a senior pretending to be a loved one in desperate need of help.
In this case, the victim had already established a trusted history of conducting business with a legitimate company overseas, said Sperlie.
“And he had sent a deposit over to this business, and the business itself had been compromised,” he said. “And that’s where the money was lost.”
In other words, he said the company itself was targeted by hackers who breached its systems to siphon out transferred funds.
“It was a very unfortunate incident, and lost a fair bit of money as a result,” he said, adding when asked that the amount was €26,000, or about $38,111 (CAD).
Although there’s not much in the way of precautionary measures the person who sent the deposit could have taken, the sergeant said, “because recipients do get hacked … when you’re sending such a large amount, you can send a smaller amount in the beginning just to confirm that the legitimate business gets it. It reduces the monetary risk in the end.”
Police also responded to three animal calls. Two of those complaints came as a result of members of the public who called police to express concerns about pets they thought were in distress due to the cold.
“They were both fine,” said Sperlie about the pets, adding when asked that people who are worried a domesticated animal is potentially being neglected and at risk can call either the local detachment or the municipality’s peace officer.
The third animal call pertained to wildlife – two elk and one moose – that had been struck along Highway 22 south and had to be put down, he said, adding there were otherwise reportedly no injuries to the motorists involved.
After one motorist hit the two elk and efforts were underway to euthanize the animals, another driver pulled up to inform responders that a moose had also been hit just up the road, he said.
In the event a driver strikes wildlife, they should call either their local RCMP detachment or Fish and Wildlife office.
“We coordinate with Fish and Wildlife to see who is in a better position to deal with it when possible,” said Sperlie.
Throughout the past week, police also reported three, no-injury collisions, with charges laid in one incident for failure to obey a traffic control device when a driver missed a stop sign along Range Road 40 and struck another vehicle in icy conditions on Jan. 16 at about 7:30 a.m., he said.
One impaired motorist, who was pulled over when a patrolling member initiated a traffic stop after running the plates and discovered the driver was behind the wheel while suspended, dodged potentially serious charges when the officer instead decided to issue an immediate roadside suspension.
“The provincial sanctions were used in lieu of a Criminal Code charge,” the sergeant said, adding that involved a 30-day vehicle impoundment as well as a mandatory 90-day license suspension, after which they can re-apply for their license.
“It was just a fail on the roadside screening device,” he said when asked how far over the limit the motorist had tested.
As well, police issued five traffic citations throughout the past week while conducting patrols, he said.
Among the other calls police responded to was a situation involving extortion that is still being investigated with charges potentially pending, an investigation into a hit-and-run that reportedly happened on the afternoon of Jan. 12 when a vehicle parked at a business in town was struck by another motorist who then just drove away, and a mischief to a surveillance camera in the area of Range Road 52 on Jan. 15 with no charges looming as the suspects remained unknown when the sergeant spoke with the Albertan.
“This was a rural camera that was set up; it sounds like it was a community camera that the community purchased together,” he said.
Residents with any information about these or other incidents are encouraged to contact the Sundre RCMP’s complaint line at 403-638-3655.
Alternatively, information may also be provided anonymously by contacting Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), online at www.P3Tips.com or by using the P3 Tips app available through the Apple App or Google Play Store.
