According to 2020 statistics from the North Bay Police Service the COVID-19 pandemic has not had a drastic impact on crime in the area.
In 2020, the NBPS saw a one percent increase in calls for service compared to 2019.
“There was no doubt 2020 was a much different year for us in policing,” noted Michael Daze, Deputy Chief of police.
Last year saw fewer cases of robbery (30 percent decrease), break and enters (five percent decrease), vehicle theft (21 percent decrease), bicycle theft (35 percent decrease) and theft under $5,000 (26 percent decrease).
“I’m not surprised to see a decrease in some areas around crime,” said Daze. “I think it’s a good thing that some of those stats are down.”
There were, however, increases in calls for drug offences (nine percent increase), mischief (21 percent increase) and assault (three percent increase).
Daze attributes the decrease in robbery calls to people staying in their homes more often, also playing a role in fewer thefts under $5,000.
When the pandemic hit last spring, Daze says the department was not quite sure what its impact on crime would be.
“It’s an unprecedented time and I think trying to see from a crime perspective of what was going to happen with the pandemic was something to gauge as we went through,” he said. “I think what’s helpful is having the year behind us and understanding the impact certainly helps guide us forward in 2021.”
Despite a small increase in calls for service, Daze says officers were tasked with more responsibility as the enforcement of public health protocols also fell to police.
