SARM seeking volunteers for rural crime watch program

The Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities is looking for a few good men and women.

The association said in a media release Thursday it needs volunteers to help with its Rural Crime Watch initiative.

“Rural municipal landowners have been keeping a watchful eye over their land for years because the risk of crime happening and going unnoticed in remote areas is a reality they live with. So this idea of a Rural Crime Watch Association is exactly what we need for our residents,” SARM president Ray Orb said in the release.

“The only way we will find success with our recently established Saskatchewan Rural Crime Watch Association is by members joining together to volunteer.”

The association, which comprises 296 RMs in the province, said there is “little to no support available” to deal with criminal activity in rural regions because of the sheer size and remote nature of the areas involved.

The hope is that more rural residents will volunteer to be the eyes and ears for police agencies.

“It’s as simple as taking a ride with a neighbour to check the land, watching for suspicious vehicles and activities while out in your yard (and) using a member call list or ‘What’s App’ to report suspicious behaviour in the neighbourhood,” Tim Brodt, the president of the Saskatchewan Rural Crime Watch Association, said in the release.

SARM said crime watch programs have proven to be effective in reducing incidents such as the theft of equipment and grain, vandalism, dumping of garbage, trespassing, break-and-enters, and cattle rustling.