PATROLLING COPS ON THE DOCKS, BLOCKS

Programs Aim To Crack Down On Crime With Citizens' Help

Sooke's six auxiliary RCMP constables are stepping up their presence
on dual fronts - seaside and on the blocks.

Two programs, the Home Security Audit and the Coastal Watch Program,
aim to use citizen's co-operation to tackle illegal activity. "It's
part of being pro-active rather than reactive," said Sooke RCMP
auxiliary coordinator Cst. Tim Wang.

Sooke's 14-member RCMP detachment is already stretched to its limits
so having the six volunteer auxiliarys on board to handle additional
programs is a bonus.

"For a regular member to do this, it takes time out of their jobs,"
said Wang, who has been stationed in Sooke for seven years.

The Coastal Watch Program was launched in Duncan and success there led
to Sooke's interest, which isn't surprising given recent drug busts
made just across the water in Washington State and in Victoria.

"And there's probably a lot more (drug smuggling) than we know," said
Wang, 41.

Sooke RCMP don't have a marine vessel and it's kept busy dealing with
drugs and alcohol on land, so Coastal Watch will be a people's attempt
to help nab drug thugs and anyone else committing crime on or near the
water.

There are two goals, said auxiliary Cst. Neil Logan, 25, in charge of
promoting the program. The first aim is to educate the public about
any suspicious goings-on along the coast, and second, to make sure the
public's information effectively reaches police.

Coastal Watch, like the existing Block Watch, is one more way
concerned citizens can assist in a "structured" way, Wang said.

Logan, with two years of auxiliary experience under his well-stocked
belt, said it only takes about 15 minutes for a high-powered speed
boat to fly across the Strait of Juan de Fuca, making an illicit
delivery or pickup.

If someone happens to spot narcotics being loaded or unloaded, that's
an "urgent" call. Dialling 1-888-855-6655 will put the caller in touch
with the Coastal Watch office. Less urgent calls, say a Zodiac seen
early in the morning being towed east down West Coast Road, could
merit a call to the Sooke RCMP, 642-5241.

As much information as possible should be recorded. Items like time,
date, place and the five Ws are recommended, Logan said. And the
caller has to be available for a return call.

Reportable matters would be sightings like a vessel without a name or
home port. All Victoria and Sooke-area boats have the "14K" identifier
as part of their registration number. All B.C. boats carry the K; a
29K boat is from Chilliwack; an 11K hails from the Kamloops area. A
boat without numbers and letters is likely not AOK.

Other things to look for Logan said, are vessels operating at night
with lights off, stealth moves like a black paint job or covered
windows, boats sailing off on their own away from the fishing hot
spots, vessels carrying extreme amounts of fuel (sometimes with drums
on the deck) or riding low in the water (indicating too much cargo),
older boats with brand new radar or scanning devices (an inconsistency
on old boats, Logan said), abandoned, newer boats, and small planes
flying around boats, indicating they may drop some drugs for pickup by
the mother ship.

"The main point is the importation of narcotics," said Logan, whose
paying job is as a Capital Regional District bylaw enforcement
officer. "Drugs are number one."

But other Coastal Watch fodder would be homeland protection and
possible terrorist strikes, illegal migrants, a distressed vessel,
environmental issues, alcohol abuse and any of dozens of Criminal Code
infractions.

Don't be surprised if you see cops walking the docks anywhere between
Beecher Bay and Port Renfrew, spreading the Coastal Watch word and
fishing for information.

"It goes to making the community safer," Wang said.

The Home Security Audit, meanwhile, will go right into the houses of
B&E victims and anyone else wanting a rating of how crime-proof their
abode or business is. Break and enter victims normally get a Home
Security Audit as part of the post-B&E investigation.

Auxiliary Cst. Brenda Ferguson will lead the well-trained troop that
will see two uniformed auxiliaries enter a home or business and
perform a 1-1.5 hour physical check. They'll check the perimeter of
the property, lighting, windows, vegetation, garage and record the
serial numbers of certain items.

The auxiliaries will give the resident their list which they hope is
used to make the examined structure more crime-proof.

Indicative of our double-income lifestyles, Wang said most break-ins
occur during the day when homes are devoid of life. Victoria police
statistics show 95 per cent of the B&Es are daytime heists and that
the average age of the perpetrator is between 13-18.

Between January 2004 to the end of June, there were 40 residential and
15 business B&Es in the detachment's area (from Beecher Bay to Port
Renfrew). There were also 12 illegal entries into cottages and various
out buildings like garages, Wang said.

What's surprising, is the estimation that 38 per cent of all break-ins
don't get reported, Wang said. "It's the dark figure of crime."

Victims either feel their home or business invasion wasn't significant
enough to merit a call to the cops or else they think they misplaced
the missing items.

Often things like alcohol or food go missing. People may not even
realize an intruder was in their castle. Or else it could be months
before someone realizes a rarely-used object has disappeared.

A lot of home security fixes involve common sense, Wang
said.

Leaving doors unlocked, windows open and keys in the ignition are
invitations for crime.

Wang has heard from Sooke residents who used to say they've been
living here 50 years and they have never been a B&E victim, "until it
happens to them."

The Home Security Audit is a free RCMP service but since it costs at
least $1,500 to train and cloth the auxiliaries doing the work,
donations are more then welcome.