Saskatchewan homicide rates are some of the highest in Canada — Saskatoon having a record of 16 and Regina at 15.
But 2024 has seen Saskatoon’s 14th homicide while Regina has only five, a discrepancy Saskatoon Police Chief Cam McBride says they weren’t expecting.
“You know, we started off the year with a significantly higher number of homicides than we could have anticipated. And that left us feeling, you know, vulnerable to what changes might be occurring in the community. That has certainly slowed down,” McBride said.
Regina Police Chief Farooq Sheikh suggests the pivot in numbers could be payoff from their team’s hard work, but admitted the decline is tough to explain.
“Very thorough investigation from start to finish is some of the reason why we’re bringing [homicides] down,” Sheikh said. “I can’t explain when we have a homicide, why we have a homicide. We don’t know until we’ve solved it or investigated. But again, it’s good news that the amount is coming down.”
McBride says overall violent crime is increasing, not just homicides.
Get breaking National news
For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.
“When we think about violence, absolutely, the number of violent calls that we’re going to are increasing, the number of weapon calls that we’re going to is increasing,” McBridge said.
McBride added people’s inclination to carry weapons also increases the potential for more homicides in Saskatoon.
“I think what’s changed is the propensity to use weapons and to carry weapons. And that certainly has changed in the community and that should be of concern to everyone. But we’re proactively working to address that.”
Sheikh says efficiently solving homicide cases takes criminals off the street before they can cause more harm.
“Some of those suspects may have gone on to do more than other crimes and other murders. So I think that could be also an impact and the reason why we’re bringing crimes down,” Sheikh said.
Timothy Smith and Katelin McGillivary, accused of committing Saskatoon’s 13th and 14th homicides are set to appear in court later in December.
© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.