By Dominic Abassi

Night watchman patrolling Lantzville streets

Sep 15, 2016 | 5:23 PM

LANTZVILLE — Lantzville is not some dark, dead-end street community for night crawlers to roam about freely doing as they please.
 
That’s the message a lonewolf night watchman is trying to drive home in the small town seemingly plagued by property crime and mischief of late.
 
A man, who only wants to be identified as “Matt”, a lifetime Lantzville resident, has taken it upon himself to conduct patrols in the middle of the night, watching for any suspicious activity.
 
Matt says it hit home for him when his truck was broken into in early June.

“It kind of just triggered a sense I didn’t know I had. It’s like ‘hey these guys are out doing something at night, let’s get out there and try to be proactive and catch them and report this stuff while it’s happening, not so much after the fact,’” he says.

Comments from residents on a Lantzville community Facebook group paint the picture of increased crime in the sleepy district, with Matt saying it seems mailboxes, cars and sheds are being targeted.

Matt, who owns and operates a Lantzville-based business, says he usually hits the streets in his large truck, equipped with a powerful light, between 12 a.m. and 4 a.m., at random times.

He says he drives the major routes, checks on areas that have had issues and is responsive to hot-spots of activity he hears about from people he talks to on social media and around the tightly-knit community.

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“After you do it a little bit you start to learn what vehicles are parked where, so if you see something suspicious it kind of stands out.”

While he says he’s not afraid to confront someone suspicious and ask what they’re up to, he’s well aware he’s not a police officer.

“I don’t get out of my vehicle if I see something, I’m doing this alone. There’s been a couple times where I just pulled up beside them and said ‘hey what are you up to’ and got a bunch of attitude. I tell them this isn’t the type of place you need to be right now, they take off pretty quick.”

Matt was asked if his patrols are in response to perceived shortcomings in the RCMP’s coverage of Lantzville.

“I’ve noticed you get a mix of reviews. Some people say the RCMP are great, they respond right away, they follow-up. Other people said they haven’t got a call back, the non-emergency line seemed annoyed they were calling about little things. In my travels at night, not once have I seen any presence of RCMP.”

However, Matt is quick to point out that the problem may be a lack of reporting, noting people need to make sure they are calling in any little thing they see.

That theory is backed-up by Nanaimo RCMP Const. Gary O’Brien, who says while Lantzville may be getting hit hard at this moment, it doesn’t have any more crime than anywhere else in their jurisdiction.

He says police presence is reactive to the reporting of crime, noting in areas like Lantzville a lot of crime gets talked about amongst citizens, but not with police.

“Often if we have say 12 offences and only four or five are being reported, it doesn’t reflect appropriately, so we can’t direct resources where they’re needed,” says O’Brien.

He says what Matt is doing is fine, they advocate people being proactive and looking out for suspicious activity, but police do not want him to take the next step and actively try to break-up any crimes in progress.

Lantzville’s nighttime crusader says his patrols will continue for the time being, adding he’s been receiving a lot of support from residents, with offers of gas cards and free coffees.

“I’m not looking for any handouts. The community has always supported me, so it’s easy to give back. Sketchy behaviour will not go unnoticed.”