Happy Valley-Goose Bay residents rally to protest crime: 'We are in crisis'

A crowd of 300 gathered Monday evening in Happy Valley-Goose Bay to voice their frustrations with crime in the Labrador community, days after a local bar was destroyed by fire.

The Take Back Our Town rally was organized by Falon Wilson, owner of the Sand Bar lounge, which burned down Saturday morning. Wilson said Happy Valley-Goose Bay is a dangerous place and crime has hurt her livelihood.

"Premier Furey, Justin Trudeau, whoever's going to listen to us: we are in crisis. We are not safe here," she told the crowd.

RCMP in the community are investigating the bar's destruction as a case of arson. In a statement Monday, police said at least two people were seen fleeing the scene as the fire broke out.

WATCH | Heated exchanges between residents and the mayor of Happy Valley-Goose Bay:

Anger boils over at Happy Valley-Goose Bay protest about community crime

21 days ago

Duration 2:45

People in Happy Valley-Goose Bay came out Monday evening to send a message to the rest of the province, calling their town a very dangerous place. The suspected arson of a popular lounge prompted the protest, but some residents say violence and lawlessness are part of daily life in the Labrador community, and police seem powerless to intervene.

Wilson said she had asked the RCMP for years to station more officers at her bar but nothing was done.

"I want everybody here to know that I have begged for years for more RCMP presence at my bar, to do walk-throughs, to stop the drugs, to remove the people who aren't allowed in. I have begged for help. Where is the help?"

Wilson also said people don't report crime they see in the community because they don't believe anything will be done.

"Let's make a stand this week, every one of you. As we leave now, whatever criminal activities you see, let's all of us, call right now," said Wilson.

Call to call police

Mayor George Andrews said the community is in the grips of a crisis. Seniors are being accosted, kids can't use the bike trails, and businesses are being hurt, he said.

"We've brought this for the last number of years to the attention of government, continuously. We keep getting zero result. The problem is nobody seems to listen. We are sick of dealing with this issue," said Andrews to cheers from those gathered.

Andrews also asked people to report crimes when they happen.

"What I'm saying to you is what I've said all along make sure you call."

Police stats stable

RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Jolene Garland told CBC News crime rates aren't spiking, according to police data.

"Our numbers show over the last number of years that the reported crimes are remaining fairly stable. But we know that does not mean that crime is not occurring," said Garland, who acknowledged some crimes may be going unreported.

"What we believe is that people are not making those reports," she said. "They may be, you know, posting on their own social media account about a crime that they've seen or that they've heard of. But that's not a police report. That doesn't get to our officers and that doesn't get to an investigation stage."

According to recent Statistics Canada data, in 3,582 incidents representing a range of offences, including mischief, assault, impaired driving and theft reported in Happy Valley-Goose Bay in 2023, police charged 309 adults and 23 youths.

Garland said not every report warrants charges.

"There are a number of different circumstances. We can't simply charge somebody, you know, without just cause or reason," she said.

The number of reported incidents marks a more than 41 per cent increase over the 2,532 incidents reported in 2019, but Garland said the RCMP collect their own data.

"I really can't speak to something that's outside of our agency," she said.

Garland declined to say how many officers are stationed in Happy Valley-Goose Bay but said it's a sufficient number.

"We have brought in additional police officers from outside of the community. We've been monitoring crime trends and scheduling those resources that we have to efficiently make extra patrols in the areas when they're needed and where they're needed," she said.

She also said it's not typical for police to act as a security detail.

"We will certainly come to your bar if there's a crime that's being committed, but it's not really something that we can, you know, invest our policing resources into when we have other crimes or other matters to deal with."

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