A couple of suspicious fires and a mischief incident at the Estevan Shoppers Mall required the attention of members of the Estevan Police Service (EPS) on Monday.
A fire in the back lane of a residence on Abbott Bay in the early afternoon destroyed several golf carts and left much of the property in damaged condition. The fire was suspicious in nature which is leading to an investigation by EPS and Estevan Fire Rescue members.
The second suspicious fire occurred in the back lane in the 600 block of George Street when several bags of leaves were ignited leaving a nearby garage and fence with minor damages. This incident is also under investigation.
The mischief event occurred Monday afternoon when some activities within the mall itself required police attention. Minor damage was inflicted on the building in the process and the matter remains under investigation.
On Sept. 26, police were alerted to a possible impaired driver who was entering the city limits in the evening hours. When police intercepted the vehicle, they found the driver was intoxicated so he was arrested and charged with driving while impaired and for having open liquor in a vehicle. He now has a November court date.
On Sept. 27, police were called to St. Joseph's Hospital in response to a report of two men appearing on the scene suffering from suspicious injuries. The two were interviewed by police and it was learned the injuries had been sustained when the two brothers were engaged in a family dispute. One of them was arrested for being intoxicated in public and for causing a disturbance. He was lodged in cells until sober.
An accident at the corner of Spruce Drive and King Street required police attention on Sept. 28. One person was injured and taken to hospital and the incident remains under investigation.
Another accident at the intersection of King Street and Petterson Drive involved a westbound vehicle making a left turn on a green light that turned in front of an eastbound vehicle. The matter remains under investigation.
Police were also asked to look into a stolen bicycle incident. The bike was later recovered by a family member but the incident remains under investigation.
On the night of Sept. 29, police were called to Coronation Street in response to a call regarding a suspicious vehicle being stuck in a drainage ditch and then abandoned in the early morning hours.
The investigation into the matter revealed the vehicle had been stolen from a Weyburn salvage yard. Police were able to identify a suspect and upon further communication with Weyburn Police Service, a 13-year-old boy was caught attempting to repeat the performance the next evening at the same salvage business. Charges are pending.
Police were called to a residential area on the east side of the city on the night of Sept. 29. When they arrived, they discovered that a vehicle that had been parked on the street had been struck by two full beer bottles. The bottles had shattered when they hit the car, resulting in some minor damages. The incident remains under investigation.
On Friday night, Sept. 30, EPS members were called to a residence to remove an unwanted guest. As police intervened, it was decided that the person in question would be allowed to remove belongings from the residence and then depart the scene.
A group of young people who left their bicycles sprawled around the entrance to a local convenience store were spoken to by police regarding their actions. It was noted that the bikes and young people were impeding the natural flow of traffic and customers at the store. The biker gang was asked to move on.
During that same evening, police issued two 24-hour licence suspensions and handed another driver a charge of driving while his blood-alcohol content was over .08 per cent. Police noted that when they were conducting a routine check on Third Street, an officer barely missed being struck by a passing vehicle that had swerved toward the police cruiser as the EPS member was getting out of the vehicle. The eastbound vehicle was stopped and the roadside breathalyzer test was failed as was the subsequent test, so the driver now has a Nov. 7 court date.
Police were called to a residential area of the city in response to a call regarding young people tossing garbage over a fence into a backyard. The police have a description of the offenders so will continue their investigation.
Police were also asked to set up an investigation into suspicious activities being performed by a group of young people in a white SUV on the northeast side of the city on the night of Sept. 30.
EPS members were called back to the same convenience store where young bike riders had been causing a disturbance earlier in the evening. This time it was noted that a large group of people had gathered outside the store and several were opening temporary water valves and spraying the water on a number of other people. Police dispersed the crowd and three people were arrested for being intoxicated in public and one of them was charged for being in possession of a controlled substance when a small amount of marijuana was found on him during the investigation. He was lodged in cells.
