Regina crime statistics show mostly small increases in 2021
CBC
Reported crimes in Regina were slightly up last year compared to 2020, but homicide numbers reached their highest level in over a decade.
On Tuesday, the Board of Police Commissioners in Regina will review the 2021 crime statistics, which indicate that the pandemic continues to impact crime trends in the city.
"Regina faced another year of COVID-19 waves with vaccine advancements, periodic restrictions, and remaining uncertainties," said the Regina Police Service (RPS) in its report.
"The question of whether Regina's crime rate will return to pre-COVID levels or continue to evolve into a new environment remains unanswered."
Last year police counted 18,552 reported crimes in Regina, an increase of three per cent compared to 2020. The pre-pandemic crime number in 2019 was 24,650, according to police.
Crimes against people, crimes against property and other criminal code violations are included in these numbers. Traffic and drug violations are not.
Crimes against people, crimes against property and other criminal code offences all climbed by two per cent over the previous year, RPS said.
The year-end crime statistics cannot be compared with other Canadian cities, since different jurisdictions may use different methodologies or reporting criteria, police said.
Homicide numbers in Regina climbed in 2021 to their highest level in over a decade, police said.
Last year police investigated 15 homicides in the city, four more than in 2020.
The victims in 2021 ranged in age from two to 52. The majority of them were male, with four being female, according to the report.
Police said 11 of the homicides seemed to be connected with so-called risk factors such as illegal activity, drug trafficking and gang association.
While the number of homicides was up in 2021, the number of attempted murders dropped to 20 last year from 26 in 2020. Within the last nine years, 2019 had the most attempted murders, with officers investigating 39.
Overall, homicides and attempted murders have more than doubled since 2012, police said.
A national Jewish advocacy organization is taking legal action against Manitoba's medical regulator over a complaint it made last year alleging a prominent doctor made antisemitic comments on social media.
A cat that went missing in a remote area of northeastern B.C. is finally back home with its family in Oklahoma, five months later.
It wasn’t clear trolleys would be a hit in Medicine Hat, but the Sunshine Trolley has wound its way into Hatters’ hearts.
More than 200 volunteers and politicians gathered in Etobicoke Saturday for the Daily Bread Food Bank’s holiday sort.
The rising cost-of-living has already made supporting a family difficult this year. But, the holidays can make staying on budget that much harder.
Strong winds across the Maritimes left thousands of N.B. Power customers without electricity on Saturday afternoon — and it could be days before all customers have their power restored.
Toronto police say they located a body inside a downtown Toronto home Saturday.
Quebec Immigration Minister Jean-François Roberge is responding to public outcry against his government’s policy changes for non-permanent residents by making a plea to the federal government.
A man in Saskatoon is in hospital after being shot by police as officers executed a warrant late Friday night.
RCMP say a man who was reported missing near Key First Nation has been found deceased.
Christy Morin says life was never the same in Alberta Avenue after the fires began.
It's small things, like a cigarette or a pair of clean socks, Rachel Montour says, that can go a long way to make you feel more human when you’re out on the street.
Several dozen members of Windsor's Chaldean community and its supporters celebrated in the cold at the corner of Marentette Avenue and Wyandotte Street East Friday, as city officials gave a secondary name to the section of Marentette between Wyandotte and Tuscarora Street: Chaldean Way.