Hello again everyone. The clocks change imminently so that means Spring is around the corner! If you are anything like me that means a time to start thinking about discarding coats and gloves and looking forward to longer, warmer days. I know that the winter has been exceptionally good, but there is nothing like wearing shorts and flip-flops!
For those of you without access to Facebook, or those who may have missed my post recently, I would like to draw your attention to something that I posted for community attention.
The Calgary Police Service are alerting Calgarians about a pair of fraudsters believed to be targeting gay men in Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver. Over the past three months, it is believed at least eight people in Alberta have been victimized, losing more than $80,000.
The two fraudsters target men on dating sites frequented by older gay males. They establish relationships with the victims before observing pin codes to their debit and credit cards and eventually stealing the cards. In one instance, it is alleged that an elderly complainant was drugged using GHB.
On Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016, Edmonton Police Service and Calgary Police Service arrested two men in Calgary in relation to this scam. Mourad AYTOUR, 42, and Saed TEETI, 36, have been charged with eight counts each of fraud and theft. Further charges are pending. Anyone who has information about this scam, or who believes they may also be a victim, is encouraged to contact the Calgary Police Service non-emergency number 403-266-1234, or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477. Alternatively, you can connect with me in the usual way.
Talking of social media, I have been extremely disappointed in public reaction to an article that Metro ran on 4 members of our Diversity Resource Team, including myself. The idea was originated by Metro, and was part of a series they are doing where they are looking to humanize the people behind the badge. Unfortunately, some members of the public have been quick to ridicule the article and the Calgary Police Service for having "all white males" in the roles that were spotlighted. To be fair, most of the criticism and sarcasm has come from people outside of the LGBTQ* community, and I want to thank those of you who have made positive comments about me in relation to the article. I find it very ironic that we are all working hard at developing and maintaining great relationships with communities that have been negatively affected by stereotypes, yet we are now being stereotyped ourselves. Since when was diversity only about skin colour? The desire to help people comes from within. We are a team of ten individuals, all very motivated and highly experienced officers who are passionate about helping people. We understand and respect the historic mistrust between law enforcement and the diverse communities that we serve, and work extremely hard at improving that aspect of people’s lives. In relation to the LGBTQ* community, I am here to serve you in any way that I can, the best that I can, and I welcome any comments or ideas that may help me to do that better or more effectively. I assure you of my best attention and intentions at all times.
Please take care of yourselves, look out for each other, and I look forward to connecting with you again next time.
