If you ever want to see a cross-section of the challenges Burnaby RCMP faces in a given year, the detachment’s annual officer in charge awards ceremonies are a good place to start.
More than 90 awards were handed out to officers and civilians at the Shadboldt Centre for the Arts May 2, and the citations read out before each one described achievements ranging from life-risking rescues to lightning fast transcriptions by the detachment’s steno pool.
Three local Mounties were also recognized with long service awards: Staff Sgt. Maj. John Buis for more than 40 years, Insp. Sanjaya Wijayakoon for 25 years and media spokesperson Cpl. Daniela Panesar for 20 years.
Nearly 400 regular members and municipal employees work at the Burnaby detachment, and another 150 people volunteer there.
They, along with a Burnaby firefighter, a Vancouver police officer, Burnaby school district officials and regular community members were among those recognized last Wednesday.
“What we often forget is that, in the world of law enforcement, what we do matters,” Chief Supt. Deanne Burleigh said during the ceremony. “What each and every one of you do every day makes a positive difference in our communities … Those who support the police in the execution of our duties, and that’s everyone in this room, you make that same positive difference every day in our community. For this, I thank you. Your community thanks you.”
Here are four stories from the evening:
Mall cop takes action
On April 25, 2017, Metropolis at Metrotown security guard Carlos Alvarez-Delgado helped catch a known violent sex offender up to no good in the Burnaby mall, according to police.
Alvarez-Delgado was on duty at work and noted a suspicious male with a camera concealed in a back pack. He “observed the suspect placing the camera under the skirts of unsuspecting women,” according to a citation describing the incident.
Alvarez-Delgado monitored the suspect on surveillance video and witnessed him repeating the manoeuver. He then teamed up with colleagues and arrested the man for voyeurism.
The suspect was turned over to Burnaby RCMP and was subsequently identified as a known violent sex offender, according to police.
Dennis Dwight Russell, 71, of Vancouver has since been found guilty of voyeurism and breaching a long-term supervision order.
He is now serving a year-and-a-half-long jail sentence to be followed by three years of probation.
Life saver
A man who tried to end his life on Burnaby Mountain last month is alive because a local Mountie risked her life pulling him out of a carbon monoxide-filled vehicle just before it burst into flames.
On April 7, at about 1:20 a.m., police got a call from someone saying their friend had told them on the phone he was trying to commit suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning in a car somewhere and was losing consciousness.
Police narrowed down the distraught man’s location to the Burnaby Mountain area and dispatched the Air 1 urban patrol helicopter and Burnaby RCMP patrols to locate his car.
Local Cpl. Stacey Rogers was the first to come upon the Lexus IS300 behind Horizons Restaurant.
The car was filled with smoke but locked, according to police, so Rogers used her police baton to smash one of the windows.
She then dragged the unconscious man to safety and performed first aid while a small fire in the vehicle suddenly flared up and engulfed the whole car.
The man regained consciousness and was taken to hospital by ambulance.
Firefighters, who had originally been called to the scene for a medical emergency, doused the blaze.
“Cpl. Rogers exhibited extreme courage at great risk to her personal safety from toxic fumes, possible explosion and fire to save the life of this man,” said staff Sgt. Ken Moe, Rogers’ supervisor.
Standoff
On Feb. 10, 2018, a group of Burnaby Mounties found themselves dealing with an emotionally distraught home invasion suspect and an apartment fire at the same time.
Burnaby RCMP were called to a lowrise apartment building in the 5800 block of Irmin Street at about 1:30 p.m. after reports of a home invasion involving a suspect who had allegedly produced an axe.
The man had fled the scene by the time officers arrived, but police determined he lived in the apartment below the victim.
When officers called on him, it became clear he was an emotionally disturbed person in crisis, according to police.
“The suspect was acting violently and barricaded himself within his apartment, and a prolonged stand-off ensued,” states a citation describing the event.
During the standoff, Const. Riley Cullen demonstrated “exceptional communication skills” while negotiating with the suspect, according to police.
Another group of officers (corporals Alan Windover and Sanjesh Lal; and constables Bryan Copp, Matthew Jones, Matthew Craik, Joseph Roshan and Jaspreet Doulla) then employed “distraction techniques” and made a “dynamic entry” into the apartment.
“The suspect threw glass, bleach and Molotov cocktails at the members,” states the citation. “A successful conducted-energy-weapon deployment incapacitated the suspect, so the members could safely detain him while simultaneously suppressing the fire.”
Charges are still pending in the case, according to police.
Off-duty hero
The off-duty heroics of a Burnaby Mountie more than three years ago were likely ecclipsed for drivers at the time by an eight-hour closure of Highway 1.
On Jan. 7, 2015 at about 12:30 a.m., Const. Timothy Digby was driving home when he saw a crash involving a diesel fuel tanker and a passenger vehicle near the Willingdon Avenue off-ramp. The tanker slid along the concrete median for a short distance before flipping on its side.
Digby pulled over and saw diesel was leaking heavily from the trailer, according to police.
“Fearing that the driver was in immediate danger, Constable Digby jumped into action,” states a citation describing the incident.
Directing a bystander to call 911, Digby climbed over the median and ran to the tanker.
He climbed on top of the vehicle to check on the driver but found the door was stuck.
“Due to the immediate danger that the leaking fuel caused, Const. Digby wrapped his hand in his shirt sleeve and proceeded to smash away the broken glass around the tractor’s window,” states the citation.
With help from another bystander, Digby then helped bring the driver to safety and went on to make sure bystanders stayed off the highway while waiting for emergency responders.
Only then did he attend to cuts to his hand that required stitches.
No one ended up being seriously injured in the crash, according to police.
