Crime figures up

The Kativik Regional Police Force presented their latest statistics on crime files to the Kativik Regional Government at their meeting last week in Kuujjuaq.

From Jan. to April this year, there were a total of 429 assaults, up from 354 over the same four-month period in 2005, and 254 in 2004.

During the first four months of 2006, 171 conjugal assaults were recorded, up from 127 in 2005 and 92 in 2004.

There has been only one suicide since the beginning of 2006, but 24 attempts. During the first four months of 2005, four suicides and 12 attempts were recorded, and in the same period of 2004, there were three suicides and 25 suicide attempts.

Sexual abuse cases were at 73 from Jan. to April 2006, 63 from Jan. to April 2005, and 48 during the same period in 2004.

The total number of files opened by the KRPF in Nunavik for the first four months of the year has risen from 1497 in 2004 to 2488 in 2006.

Police detained 1,252 people from Jan. to April.

At the KRG meeting, the Kativik Regional Police Force discussed the difficulty of hiring guards for prisoners because of the low wages and irregular hours.

“Guards are one of our biggest problems in many communities,” said Dep. Chief of Police Jobie Epoo. “Because we don’t have any money, we can’t do anything about it.”