Original Media Release: https://www.sarniapolice.ca/news/420/property-crime-and-shopping-carts-update/
On December 19th 2024 members of the Sarnia Police Auxiliary Unit worked to collect stolen and abandoned shopping carts from various locations across the city. These carts were returned to their owners and help mitigate the high cost of crime, the value of which is often passed on to consumers.
The SPS Auxiliary Unit is a team of trained police volunteers, who participate in a multitude of community initiatives and special events. In addition to their other support roles, our dedicated Auxiliary members help free up our front line officers to stay available for higher priority matters. Anyone interested in our Auxiliary Unit s encouraged to learn more on our website: https://www.sarniapolice.ca/auxiliary-officers
This shopping cart project is part of several long term initiatives intended to deal with prolific thievery and its impact within our community This project includes an escalating phased approach that involving education and referral to support services. Offenders are encouraged to return these stolen items and (hopefully) mitigate the level of thefts we have been experiencing. In time, those who have been warned of the consequences, will face criminal charges for repeated instances. As with any criminal investigation, the circumstances within each interaction are considered to assess what enforcement action is appropriate.
“We always have opportunities in our city to explore new policing approaches. As an example, if we think way back to the Broken Windows Theory, visible signs of disorder and misbehaviour could be responsible for encouraging further disorder and misbehaviour. These stolen and abandoned carts, highly visible and strewn around our community, are symbolic of the need for new approaches. The SPS continues to implement new initiatives to help protect our residents and businesses from crime and disorder” – Chief Derek Davis
