Despite the increase in shootings, the most recent of which left one dead and one injured in Anjou on Thursday, the metropolis remains a “safe” city, the Montreal police said Thursday, calling for calm and continued efforts against the circulation of firearms.
“You still have to take a step back and see the big picture. You have to look at what is going on in major North American cities to realize that, all in all, Montreal is a safe city, ”Inspector David Shane, spokesperson for the SPVM, explained Friday on the sidelines of a press conference.
Mr. Shane argued that the whole network “is working to keep it safe” but that gun violence “is a societal phenomenon, not just a criminal one”. “It requires a comprehensive approach from all security partners. The police cannot come to the end of this alone, ”he said.
His comments come as another shooting erupted Thursday night in northeast Montreal, leaving one dead and one injured. A 20-year-old man who was shot in the upper body in his vehicle on Place Cointerel succumbed to his injuries overnight Friday.
While several residents show signs of concern, some even considering leaving the neighborhood, Inspector Shane was empathetic. “I understand very well people being in shock, especially when it happens on our streets and when it’s very close to us. It challenges us ourselves as police officers, as parents too, when events affect younger people. It shocks us, it comes to seek us in our guts ”, he offered on this subject.
All the required resources have been deployed and are being deployed to solve this crime. Every time there is an attempted murder, it is important to us and we do not skimp on the means.
David Shane, SPVM inspector
Begging all parties to “take their leadership”, the inspector also recalled that in the medium and long term, the police “cannot intervene to change the socio-economic data of a neighborhood, for example”. In Quebec, the Minister of Public Security Geneviève Guilbault must present on Sunday new measures to prevent crime in the metropolis in order to tackle the “scourges at the origin” of this violence, social inequalities, with a plan to $ 46 million over five years.
“This fourth young person killed” Thursday testifies to “this rise in violence, or this stride of violent events, of armed conflicts, which has been raging in Montreal for a few weeks and months,” said Mr.me Guilbault during a press scrum Thursday.
An “unequivocal success” for Info-Crime
The confidential Info-Crime Montreal reporting center also reported on Friday that it had received just over 10,620 reports from citizens over the past year, between 1er June 2020 and May 31, 2021. More than half were done via a web form (5488) and the other half by phone, or 5136. This total is more than double compared to last year, while in 2019-2020, the group had received barely 5,000 reports.
This is the first time in the organization’s history that the number of electronic reports has exceeded those made by telephone.
Speaking of “unequivocal success”, the group – which is a partner of the SPVM – took the opportunity to announce that it is improving its rewards program for information leading to arrests. The cap will drop from $ 2,000 to $ 3,000.
“The vast majority of citizens don’t want anything in return. On the other hand, we are doing this with the aim of perhaps making more languages untied, ”said Info-Crime CEO Jean Touchette, thanking the citizens. “Never hesitate to pass on information about criminal activity. There is no small information, ”he insisted.
“We have long believed that the fight against crime is not just the fight of the police, it is everyone’s business. We are convinced that all together, we can reduce crime, ”added Mr. Touchette.