In the midst of the pandemic, criminals continue to do their stuff and Police continue to catch them. I don’t have statistics on comparative crime rates between 2019 and 2020 but based on what I’ve heard, they seem to be about the same. Some Police reports say that a wanted person was observed and arrested and one wonders if the observed criminal was wearing a mask since that would make them more difficult to identify – but they perhaps are amongst those who object to wearing a mask! There’s a wide range of criminals but most crimes are relatively minor – see a sample from the past week below. To see the full range, you can also see the Crime map which is available on the Police Web site – see link below.
Crime Reports from Crime Map
In a typical week, there are 60 incidents reported in the Crime Map. They range from thefts, to suspicious persons to traffic accidents – I counted 33 categories. The highest density areas for crime are downtown, along Division to the Railway and the Strathy Road Area. The location of incidents is not super accurate for privacy reasons and crimes like sexual assault, suicides and domestic violence are not shown to protect the victims. Also frauds and fail to show at court are not included.
But if you are looking to know what parts of Town to avoid, the Crime Map would be the place to check.
Crime Reports by Press Release
Most reports are provided by the Communications coordinator, Lisa Munday. Here are reports from the most recent week. You can also see them on the Police web site here.
March 1: Police responded to a complaint of an individual’s behaviour at a business on Division Street and arrested 35-year-old Stacey Watson of Cobourg.
Charged with:
- Fail to Comply with Release Order
Watson was released with a future court date.
March 1: Police responded to a report of assault after an encounter between a tenant and a woman in the front lobby of an apartment complex in central Cobourg. No injuries occurred during the assault. As a result, 34-year-old Tiffany Doherty-Bowen of Cobourg was arrested.
Charged with:
- Assault
- Uttering threats
- Fail to Comply with Probation
- Fail to Comply with Undertaking
The accused was held in custody pending a show cause hearing.
March 3: 47 -year-old Thomas Palmisano, of Cobourg turned himself in at the Cobourg Police Station because of an outstanding arrest warrant.
Charged with:
- Fail to Attend Court
- Fail to Comply with Probation
- Possession under $5,000
- Theft Under $5,000
Palmisano was released from police custody with a future court date in April of 2021.
March 4: 31-year-old Thomas Wybenga of Courtice was arrested by Durham Regional Police. There was an outstanding Cobourg Police arrest warrant.
Charged with:
- Fail to attend for Fingerprinting
- Fail to Attend Court
- Causing a Disturbance
- Resist Arrest
- Assault Police Officer
- Being Intoxicated in a Public Place
Wybenga was released from police custody with a future court date.
March 4: 34-year-old Justin Best, of Cobourg was observed by officers on patrol in downtown Cobourg. He had an outstanding arrest warrant so was arrested.
Charged with:
- Fail to Attend Court
- Mischief Under $5000.00
- Theft Under $5,000.00
- Escape Lawful Custody
Best was released from police custody with a future court date.
March 6: 27-year-old Samantha Ascroft-Walker of Glanbrook was arrested by Hamilton Police on an outstanding Cobourg Police Warrant.
Charged with:
- Theft under $5000
- Possession under $5000
The accused was released on an undertaking with a future court date.
March 7: 34-year-old Kory Trenouth of Port Hope was arrested by Port Hope Police on an outstanding Cobourg Police Warrant.
Charged with:
- Theft under $5000
The accused was released on an undertaking with a future court date.
March 7: 24-year-old Amanda Munro of Cobourg was arrested by Port Hope Police on an outstanding Cobourg Police Warrant
Charged with:
- Theft under $5000
- Possession under $5000
- Fraudulent use of a credit card
- Fail to comply with appearance notice – fingerprinting
- Fail to attend court
The accused was released on an undertaking with a future court date.
March 7: 47-year-old Grant Hooper of Cobourg stole a bicycle and fled but he was located in Downtown Cobourg and arrested by Cobourg Police.
Charged with:
- Theft under $5000
- Possession under $5000
- Fail to comply with a probation order
Hooper was released on an undertaking with a future court date.
Only one of the above was kept in custody despite many of them being arrested for “Fail to Show”. This is because the Federal Government is concerned that there are too many people on remand awaiting a bail hearing so in their Bill C-75 (which is primarily aimed at streamlining court hearings) they have included an edict that most of those arrested should be released pending a bail hearing and not kept in custody unless they are a danger to the public. Failing to appear previously doesn’t count. Bill C-75 was given Royal assent in June 2019.
Links
- Crime Map
- I recommend the Todays Northumberland News site for ongoing reports on police activities.
Print Article:
CRIME : There are a couple of people starting fires in sheds downtown, it is under investigation. Congrats to the firemen actions and their own coverage on line. //People need to be on their guard. Fences protect you against trespassers and criminals. Lock your gates, get solar lights, cameras are cheaper all the time.// We heard the amber alert twice today. Patrol is regular on our streets. The vaccine is coming soon as Mr. Piccini told me but variances as well. There is a link between anxiety and the financial consequences caused by the pandemic, mental health and crime. We are crossing that bridge now. Be kind.
I think what we need to understand is that other Towns around here may have similar issues but not to the continued extent that Cobourg does . They have overcome !
We have the Transition house for the County , we are about to have 4 or 5 new Marijuana shops
we have Pawn shops not Antique emporiums we have landlords that have not invested into their own income properties so as to make them energy efficient , functional , affordable to operate so as to attract a better class of Tenants and income stable
So what are you doing about this Sandpiper? all we see from you are depressing commentaries about depressing topics makes one wonder why one would buy or sell real estate in this Town!
Girl Scout entrepreneurs Cannabis and cookies? Girl Scout leaders say they were wrongly prohibited from selling near marijuana store | State News | themorningsun.com
Where are the traffic control stats
So we have more police Fewer Out of Towners coming due to the Lock Down
and just as much crime as last year and the year before in all the same areas
What is wrong with this picture ???
Obviously out of towners do not affect Coburg’s crime stats.
See! It’s the “out of towners” that cause all the problems. Probably the beach people too.
Catch and release
Protecting the public?
Catch and release also ensures ongoing employment if the reports of repeat offenders are correct.
Do you really beleive this? I would think its frustrating to arrest the same people over and over, not to mention the ongoing paperwork that must be involved.
Do those arrested ever come to trail? Are they ever convicted? Do they suffer penalty? Who favours catch and release? I almost never see any comments, pro or con, in the media.
Your questions may have merit but the answers have more to do with courts and not the local police.
Our Justice System is a mess and life is cheap in Canada. In the Federal system (over 2 year sentence) which is very rare. They only do 2/3 of their sentences max and are released no matter their behaviour or assessment while in custody. I understand they all received Covid cheques while in custody as well. Who says crime does not pay.
It is more than a mess since Covid 19.. but life is NOT CHEAP IN CANADA. Our justice system is a huge sewer which cannot be controlled or purified. The police like the crown ( your public defender) are not to be blamed. On that same line of structure judges are promoted lawyers and their “quality” varies except their pensions, they are outrageously high.Even after I read Liz info, there should be more motions to transfer to Toronto certain local cases. The recidivist is often at Lindsay Pen a very “nice” place for them who won’t keep people in poor health, it is too costly they say. We are not carrying the same flow of offenders and crimes as certain policemen will tell you. And if you doubt it answer the question who would challenge a church if they are acting like criminals and pretend to be above the law ? Especially when we know that the feds paid 75$ millions to help a denomination from their bad deeds. Answer: we are. ~ Now budget wise..The head of our police makes nearly as much money as the prime minister, is that ok for Batman and Robin ? the vilain is out by the window and a “cult” is not offering the last rights behind covid tapes, and still does their bad things ? I agree with one item of poverty : A poor justice system is a poor country, we are poor administrators and we could all live a lot better I would say. We need to change and people hate changes.
I have read different articles in Toronto papers, especially the Toronto Sun on how totally frustrated the police are there with the situation. Police chiefs state they arrest and re-arrest the same people over and over and these people are mainly responsible for a great number of the crimes. Judges are appointed. Ontario was under the provincial Liberals for a very long time and they were the ones that appointed many of the judges. Our society has been undergoing a sea change for many years. It is also why it is reported large numbers are fleeing the major cities for towns such as ours. I read so often in the comments section of the Toronto Sun – glad I left that cesspool.
This link and interview with the Chief of Police from last year provides some front-line insight:
http://todaysnorthumberland.ca/2019/10/17/revolving-door-of-justice-a-huge-problem-in-cobourg-states-police-chief/
It sure does. Well worth the read. Thanks for posting.
Yes, here is another Link. Police Saunders in 2019, placed the blame for lenient bail directly on the Wynne government as reported in this article. Stating they arrest and re-arrest.
https://torontosun.com/news/local-news/warmington-police-chief-puts-bail-system-in-his-sights
“We’re a fairly small community and repeat thefts and thefts are tiresome. They wear on my officers and I can only imagine the weight on the community. It’s a huge problem.”
— Police Chief Paul VandeGraaf in “Today’s Northumberland”.
I should imagine the same people complaining about about ‘catch and release’ would be the same people who would complain about the costs of prisons and prisoners’ rights!
Also, are the perps tested for covid before release?
Thank Federal Bill C-75. I was surprised to see one major paper reported a Federal Election possibility for as early as June. Federal Election will be coming whether June or not, Bill C-75, you may wish to carefully think before you vote. There are other choices beyond the reigning party people!