Domestic disputes calls to Oak Bay Police rise 300 per cent during COVID-19 pandemic

Police in Oak Bay have seen a surge in domestic dispute calls during the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a new report, Oak Bay Police experienced a 300 per cent increase in domestic disputes calls, and a 50 per cent increase in assault calls, compared to the same time period last year.

Additionally, auto theft calls were up 145 per cent while marine theft calls were up 33 per cent.

Although there was a spike in those types of crimes between March 1 and May 11, the department saw a decrease in calls for other types of crimes during the same period.

Sexual assault calls were down 100 per cent, commercial break-and-enter calls were down 83 per cent, residential break-and-enter calls were down 33 per cent, compared to the same time last year, according to the report.

Vacation home checks calls were down 88 per cent, the largest decline of any category listed in the department’s report.

Calls for mental health, however, remained unchanged.

According to the report, Oak Bay Police received a total of eight calls for domestic disputes, six calls for assaults, one call for commercial break-and-enter, four calls for residential break-and-enter, nine for mental health, eight for marine thefts, and seven for vacation home checks between March 1 and May 11 of this year.

There were no calls for sexual assaults made to the department during that time frame, a 100 per cent decrease from the same period last year.

Meanwhile, Oak Bay Police’s overall file count between March 1 and May 11 of this year was down 15 per cent compared to the same period last year.

The report also shows that the department created a brand new overtime pay category called “COVID-19 related” in March. Officers worked a total of 135 hours of COVID-19 related, of which 72 hours have been paid out and 63 hours have been banked.

As of April 30, the department had paid a total of $45,565 in overtime this year.

The report was included in the District of Oak Bay’s May 26 police board meeting agenda package.

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