MHPS reports nothing but ‘low level’ issues at Stampede
By FERNANDO MORENO Local Journalism Initiative Reporter on August 2, 2023.
mhnews@medicinehatnews.com This year’s Stampede was rather boring and tame for the Medicine Hat Police Service, and that’s just the way they like it. There were a few certain incident types that increased, but other than that reports decreased from 2022. “It was a great result overall,” says Sgt. Adam Gregory of the Community Support Unit. The main incidents this year involved missing persons cases, mostly of children separated from their parents, or missing property, mainly in the form of keys or cellphones. Gregory assures all such cases were resolved with reunification of families and most property recovered. “Children are the most important thing in our community,” Gregory said of making sure lost kids are found safe and returned to their caregivers. There was an increase in missing persons and property cases compared to previous years. Gregory believes that is likely due to increased awareness of police presence and how people can receive assistance. “Most things that happened were very low level,” says Gregory, addressing the frequency of incidents last year. “In comparison to past years, vehicles and traffic complaints were down,” he said. He also cites fewer physical confrontations this year. “We had lower instances of such things reported to us than normal.” There are often collisions or issues with parking on the Stampede grounds, but neither were reported this year. In comparison, Gregory says there was a stolen vehicle, vehicle break-ins and multiple collisions last year. He says the Medicine Hat Police Service wants to show the community throughout the year that it can be counted and will always assist to the best of its ability. “The Medicine Hat Police Service is really proud of getting to be involved with the Stampede and getting to interact with the citizens,” he said. “It was an excellent opportunity to engage with families, adults and the youth in our city. We’re excited every year to do our policing duties while also engaging with the community.” 15-14
