High Prairie RCMP S/Sgt. Warren Wright says crime reduction is a priority and welcomes the recent announcement of more money from the province.

Local police and the community is welcoming more support to fight rural crime.

The provincial government announced March 9 steps to take action to combat rural crime by investing $10 million in more RCMP officers, civilian staff and Crown prosecutors.

“Crime reduction is a priority and I’m very pleased with the announcement,” High Prairie RCMP S/Sgt. Warren Wright says.

“Although it is too early in the process to know if any additional human resources such as police officers or administrative staff will be added at the High Prairie detachment itself, the proposed support centre will make operational policing more efficient and increase the police visibility in our community.”

Measures are also being introduced by government to ensure police have the resources needed to address their top priorities.

The steps include focusing on intelligence and sharing information to help police better identify and catch prolific offenders, and shifting some routine tasks to civilian workers so officers can spend more time patrolling and investigating in the community.

“It’s nice to see the government is taking action on rural crime,” Big Lakes County Reeve Ken Matthews says.

“Crime is a concern in rural areas.”

However, he questions if the recent funding boost is enough to fight crime.

“Unless the punishment suits the crime, it doesn’t matter how many people they catch.

“Under the eyes of the law, the suspects and criminals have more rights than the property owners,” Matthews says.

He is pleased, however, that the government is committed to reducing the amount of time officers spend in the office to do paperwork when their time is better spent patroling in the community.

The provincial rural government association also welcomes the added services.

“In recent years, crime rates have been rising in rural Alberta,” says Al Kemmere, president, of the Association of Alberta Municipal Districts and Counties.

“We are confident that the province’s investment in a crime-reduction strategy, intelligence-led policing and a centralized data centre will go a long way to proactively address some of the issues being experienced related to rural crime.

“Improving information-sharing amongst law enforcement agencies and rural Albertans is an excellent next step towards addressing this serious issue.”

The government remain committed to fight rural crime.

“With help from our valued partners in the RCMP, we have developed a detailed plan to protect rural Albertans and their property,” Justice Minister and Solicitor General Kathleen Ganley says.

“While there’s no single, easy solution to fix rural crime, our strategy puts several important tools in the crime-fighting toolbox,” she adds.