by Lisa Goudy
The RCMP is unsure if bank robberies in small towns are becoming more common, despite three occurrences in the last month.
When asked if small-town robberies are a growing trend in the province, Sgt. Sheri-Lynne Fedorowich of the Yorkton RCMP detachment remained neutral on the subject.
"I can't say one way or another," said Fedorowich. "Certainly, it's unpredictable."
Springside was the latest small town to have a bank robbed on Friday afternoon when two men armed with a long-barrelled firearm made off with cash from the town's credit union.
The town of Theodore had its credit union robbed on Aug. 25 and a financial institution was robbed in Quill Lake on Aug. 23.
All three of these incidents occurred during broad daylight.
"I think it stands to reason that crime can happen at any time, any area," said Fedorowich.
Two out of the three robberies occurred in the Yorkton district - Springside and Theodore.
Fedorowich said the RC-MP has joined forces with the General Investigative Section of the Yorkton district and with other RCMP sections to deal with the matter. The support sections, such as the Forensic Identification Section and police dog services, are all working closely in these cases.
"We're trying to consolidate with the other detachments that have ... also been subject to armed robberies in their area," said Fedorowich. "We're trying to ... consolidate our investigations and kind of work together on putting a plan in place to try and solve this."
Ken Anderson, CEO of SaskCentral Credit Unions - which speaks for the joint interests of credit unions in the province - was unavailable Monday.
But in an email from a SaskCentral spokeswoman, the organization said no employees were injured in the robberies.
"Robberies or attempted robberies are a concern for all financial institutions in rural and urban communities," the email said. "We have high standards and protocols in place with regard to security."
The statement went on to say that all credit union deposits are "fully guaranteed."
"The safety of our employees and members is our No. 1 priority. Our employees are trained to deal with these situations," it said.
Fedorowich stressed that having employees educated and aware of what's going on around them is important to aid in the prevention of crime.
"I think that anything's possible and I think that, financial institutions specifically, everyone has to kind of take a look at security systems in place and video surveillance capabilities," she said. "The rural municipalities, if they have ruralcrime watch, I think you have to be aware of suspicious activity in your area."
Activities such as individuals spending an abnormal amount of cash or buying strange purchases should be reported to the police, she said.
"We're just asking the public if they have any information to call Crime Stoppers or us directly, more so on the side of suspicious activity in different community areas," she said. "The matter remains under investigation and like I said, we're working with all our support sections to try and solve all these armed robberies."
The RCMP is unsure if bank robberies in small towns are becoming more common, despite three occurrences in the last month.
When asked if small-town robberies are a growing trend in the province, Sgt. Sheri-Lynne Fedorowich of the Yorkton RCMP detachment remained neutral on the subject.
"I can't say one way or another," said Fedorowich. "Certainly, it's unpredictable."
Springside was the latest small town to have a bank robbed on Friday afternoon when two men armed with a long-barrelled firearm made off with cash from the town's credit union.
The town of Theodore had its credit union robbed on Aug. 25 and a financial institution was robbed in Quill Lake on Aug. 23.
All three of these incidents occurred during broad daylight.
"I think it stands to reason that crime can happen at any time, any area," said Fedorowich.
Two out of the three robberies occurred in the Yorkton district - Springside and Theodore.
Fedorowich said the RC-MP has joined forces with the General Investigative Section of the Yorkton district and with other RCMP sections to deal with the matter. The support sections, such as the Forensic Identification Section and police dog services, are all working closely in these cases.
"We're trying to consolidate with the other detachments that have ... also been subject to armed robberies in their area," said Fedorowich. "We're trying to ... consolidate our investigations and kind of work together on putting a plan in place to try and solve this."
Ken Anderson, CEO of SaskCentral Credit Unions - which speaks for the joint interests of credit unions in the province - was unavailable Monday.
But in an email from a SaskCentral spokeswoman, the organization said no employees were injured in the robberies.
"Robberies or attempted robberies are a concern for all financial institutions in rural and urban communities," the email said. "We have high standards and protocols in place with regard to security."
The statement went on to say that all credit union deposits are "fully guaranteed."
"The safety of our employees and members is our No. 1 priority. Our employees are trained to deal with these situations," it said.
Fedorowich stressed that having employees educated and aware of what's going on around them is important to aid in the prevention of crime.
"I think that anything's possible and I think that, financial institutions specifically, everyone has to kind of take a look at security systems in place and video surveillance capabilities," she said. "The rural municipalities, if they have ruralcrime watch, I think you have to be aware of suspicious activity in your area."
Activities such as individuals spending an abnormal amount of cash or buying strange purchases should be reported to the police, she said.
"We're just asking the public if they have any information to call Crime Stoppers or us directly, more so on the side of suspicious activity in different community areas," she said. "The matter remains under investigation and like I said, we're working with all our support sections to try and solve all these armed robberies."
More information about the Springside robbery
More information about the Theodore robbery
More information about the Quill Lake robbery
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