POLICE BEAT: Cops contain bears near Warfield school; recommend charges against local man

Parents may be wondering why there was a police presence outside Warfield’s Webster Elementary School this morning – Trail RCMP Cpl. Dave Johnson said the issue was a trio of bears.

“We actually got a call at 6:45 a.m. from a concerned citizen, saying there was a cougar in a tree near the school,” he said, adding police attended and found the tree in question, which in fact was housing a momma bear and two cubs at the time. “It was near a walking path frequented by children.”

He said the officers, unable to scare the bears down or away, contacted Conservation. They then stood guard, preventing any human/animal conflict for just over an hour, until Conservation officers arrived.

He said Conservation officers determined the bears had to be killed, but dispatched the animals discreetly, out of the view of young children.

Meanwhile this morning, he said, Trail RCMP forwarded ‘unlawfully at large’ charges to Crown Counsel in relation to a man who failed to present himself for jail.

The man, he said, was serving an intermittent sentence (weekend incarceration) for breaking and entering.  Since he did not arrive to serve his time, he will now be facing more criminal charges.

“I’ve heard people express concern that intermittent sentences aren’t harsh enough – but we hold them accountable, and they serve their time. It’s actually harder to serve time here, because we’re not set up for longer stays.”

He said there’s no threat to the public vis-à-vis this offender.