Between January 4 and January 11, 2017, the Sidney North Saanich RCMP responded to 137 calls for service.
• In the evening of January 4, officers responded to a complaint of two counterfeit bills which had been passed at a Sidney store. The bills were in U.S. $20 denominations and discovered to be counterfeit during the store’s night audit. A suspect was captured on surveillance video. RCMP are still attempting to identify the suspect who passed the bills.
• On January 6 a good samaritan approached a police officer after he had found a wallet which contained a significant amount of cash.
The wallet and cash were turned over to the RCMP officer who was then able to track down the wallet’s owner, based on identification in the wallet. The wallet and cash were subsequently returned to a very grateful owner.
• On January 7, during the wee hours of the morning, Sidney North Saanich RCMP responded to a complaint of someone not paying their taxi fare. A man had obtained a taxi ride to an address in North Saanich and then claimed he had no money, so had to go into a house to get payment.
After getting out of the cab, the man failed to return.
Police attended the residence and spoke with the man who was found to be under the influence of alcohol. After being advised of the potential negative consequences of failing to pay his cab fare, such as facing arrest and a criminal charge, the man made a good decision and decided to pay his cab fare.
• On the afternoon of January 7, Sidney North Saanich RCMP responded to a complaint of a shoplifter who had been apprehended at the local Save-On Foods after attempting to steal over $500 dollars worth of merchandise.
The suspect, who is not from the local area, was arrested and found to have a lengthy history of similar offences throughout the Greater Victoria area. The suspect was eventually released from custody by way of a Promise to Appear in court, so that he can be dealt with by a Judge later in the month.
• On the late evening of January 7, Sidney North Saanich RCMP officers responded to a break and enter at the old White Spot restaurant on Mount Newton Cross Road.
An unknown suspect had apparently smashed a window in the back of the restaurant and then reached through to unlock it in order to gain entry.
An alarm was triggered, which likely frightened off the would-be burglar before he had a chance to steal anything.
Sidney North Saanich RCMP are continuing to investigate and process evidence in an effort to identify the suspect.
— Sidney North Saanich RCMP