CARLYLE - The 911 dispatchers and police officers treat all calls seriously and have to ensure there is no emergency at the other end of the line, even if no one speaks during the call or the caller hangs up.
Between November 2021 and March 2022, hundreds of calls were made to Saskatchewan's 911 dispatch centre. The caller did not identify themselves during the calls, nor did they indicate any emergency.
Officers repeatedly checked the area where these calls were being placed, and did not find evidence of any emergency or need for any type of police assistance.
RCMP continued to investigate and discovered the calls were made from an unregistered cell phone. On March 15, officers executed a search warrant at a residence in Kenaston. As a result, Kenneth Howells of Kenaston was arrested and charged with one count of harassing communications under the Criminal Code.
The reason I mention this investigation is because on March 25, Saskatchewan's 911 dispatch centre received 22 calls from a registered cell phone in Redvers. The calls sounded like kids playing on the phone who reported multiple crimes including a house fire and a murder while laughing about it.
Although the RCMP chose not to complete a search warrant in order to identify and charge the youth(s) responsible for these calls, they did educate the students on 911 safeties.
The 911 line is an emergency service that saves lives on a daily basis. Police should not be tolerating any misuse especially when the misuse is completed in a reckless and disrespectful manner. Calling 911 when you’re not experiencing an emergency needlessly ties up dispatchers and police officers time and effort.
On a positive note, Const. Rafal Samowedziuk will be visiting schools in the Carlyle area and talking to kids about proper use of 911. Please take the time to have a discussion with your children about 911 safeties because calling 911 is not a game.
The Carlyle RCMP was busy conducting traffic stops this week, issuing 33 tickets for speeding, inadequate lights and failing to have a driver’s licence, to name a few. The highest ticket of the week award goes to an impaired driver travelling 150 kilometres per hour near Carlyle on Highway 13. The male received a $798 fine for his speeding.
The second place award goes to a male for traveling 136 kilometres an hour in a 90 km/hr zone on Highway 601. The male received a $753 fine for travelling 46 kilometres over the legal limit.
The Carlyle RCMP had several sensitive files and investigations called in this week relating to domestic and family violence. I don’t like mentioning these sensitive investigations in the paper but I thought it could potentially have a positive impact on the community if I reminded people to be kind to one another.
Reach out to your friends, colleagues and children because you never know what they might be going through at home, work or even at school.
On March 23, a male from Carlyle reported a fraud where he lost $15,000. Upon investigation, it was determined that a firewall had been hacked. This allowed an outside source to watch when the male was logging into his online banking.
This allowed the outside source to have the male’s username and password to his online banking. The fraudster then stole $15,000 from the male’s account. Luckily the bank will be refunding the man’s losses due to the bank’s firewall being hacked.
On March 24, the RCMP received a complaint from a delivery driver in the RM of Brock. The motorist stated he had honked his horn at another driver on the road due to a driving infraction and he was followed to his next delivery. The driver then stated that the male from the other vehicle exited his vehicle and yelled at him and shoved him before leaving.
The delivery driver did not want any charges in this instance but wanted the man spoken to. RCMP spoke to the suspect, who advised that he did in fact confront the delivery driver but he did not shove him.
On March 26, the RCMP received a call from a care home resident in Redvers who was reporting a break and enter. RCMP spoke with the male, who was very hard to understand. Eventually a care home employee came to the phone and stated that they realize the male had called the police after a bad dream.
That same day, RCMP received a drunk call from a highly intoxicated male staying at a hotel in Carlyle. The caller advised that his phone and money had been stolen or misplaced. The caller was so intoxicated that he was not making sense and members could not understand him. RCMP told the male to contact the RCMP once he was sober to continue with the investigation.
Later that day, the RCMP located a male from P.E.I. travelling 150 km/hr in a 2001 Toyota Camry on Highway 13 near Carlyle. When members stopped the vehicle, they determined the driver was under the influence of cannabis marijuana and confirmed that with the use of the oral screening device and blood taken at the hospital. The driver received charges of impaired driving, a $798 speeding ticket, a $360 ticket for possessing or consuming cannabis in a vehicle, and had his vehicle impounded for 30 days.
Two days later, on March 28, the RCMP received a complaint from a different male advising that he had paid the male from P.E.I. $2,000 and gave him a ride to the airport in exchange for the vehicle. The individual was not happy to hear that the vehicle was going to remain impounded for the next 30 days even though he was now the owner of the car.
We had several drug related overdoses and medical emergencies in the area. Some of the drug issues were a result of illicit recreational drugs while some were a result of improper use of prescribed drugs.
I want to ensure that if someone needs help the Suicide Prevention Line is always available in the paper for them. We want to encourage everyone to reach out for help and talk to someone if they can. No matter how bad things may seem, remember that they can always get better. Life can be very difficult to say the least.
Please reach out and check in with friends, co-workers and family see how they are doing. It’s a perfectly normal question to ask people how they are doing. Don’t let people suffer in silence. If you see someone that you believe needs some help but won’t accept help from you, please let the police or their family know.
In Saskatchewan you can call/text the mental health crisis line at 2-1-1 Counselling Connect Saskatchewan or call the Canadian Mental Health Association at 306-384-9333.
