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Extra police officers dispatched to Kelowna to help manage the city’s wildfire crisis are turning their attention to crime.
“While concentrating on the McDougall Creek wildfire, police officers continue to solve crimes and take weapons off the street,” said Kelowna RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Judith Bertrand.
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For example, on Saturday police officers temporarily assigned to Kelowna with the RCMP Division Emergency Operations Centre executed search warrants and seized drugs and weapons from the streets.
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“While partnering with police officers in West Kelowna, a team of police officers identified the suspect in a break and enter at a large storage unit that had occurred a few weeks ago,” Bertrand said.
“The team quickly prepared and executed two search warrants, which resulted in the recovery of dozens of stolen identification cards and credit cards.
“Later that day, after witnessing suspicious behaviour near a roadblock on Westside Road, police officers initiated an investigation during which they seized a handgun, a variety of illicit drugs and a significant amount of money from two suspects.”
The McDougall Creek wildfire west of Kelowna was discovered on Aug. 15 and has so far burned almost 14,000 hectares and led to the destruction of 190 properties and heavily damaged electrical infrastructure. No lives have been lost in this fire that is still classified as out of control.
The RCMP Division Emergency Operations Centre was deployed to the fire on Aug. 18 when the province declared a state of emergency in the area.
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