Wellness checks, collisions and domestic violence were tops among the 12,775 calls made to York Regional Police in Newmarket last year.
More than 10 per cent of calls for service were wellness checks based on police data, followed by motor vehicle collisions, domestic violence, ambulance assistance and family domestic, Supt. Russ Bellman told Newmarket council May 6.
Wellness checks can range from calling out of concern for a neighbour to calling for someone out in public who appears in need of help. Mayor John Taylor said it shows the type of community Newmarket is.
“That is a pretty powerful statement. We always talk about how much care and compassion there is in this community,” he said. “That one piece of data alone speaks volumes.”
The presentation highlighted different aspects of York Regional Police in Newmarket, along with crimes of interest and recent trends.
Other calls for service in the top 10 for 2023 included impaired driving, assisting a citizen, suspicious persons, disputes or persons in crisis.
Newmarket Deputy Mayor Tom Vegh expressed some concern for domestic calls, with more than 600 calls for domestic violence and 400 calls for family domestic situations.
“It’s a very sad statistic,” he said.
He added a question about how many victims likely need help beyond police, to which Bellman responded that victim services are made aware and attend these calls.
Bellman also highlighted the trends with car thefts, which he said have grown exponentially in recent months. Newmarket has hovered between 10 to 20 stolen vehicles per month over the past year, while York Region as a whole is averaging 400, Bellman said.
“Newmarket is, all things considered, just a lot safer,” he said regarding car thefts.
More common are thefts from vehicles. He said these are crimes of opportunity, where thieves will check for unlocked car doors to take something of value. In Newmarket in 2023, these calls ranged from 15 to 35 per month, though have been much lower in 2024 with a peak of 10 in April.
"The numbers come and go,” he said.
Residential break-ins ranged between one and 12 per month in Newmarket throughout 2023, though have been somewhat up in 2024 year over year, with 12 such incidents in April.
Bellman said these crimes decreased overall due to the pandemic due to people being home more, but they spend plenty of investigative resources to address these cases.
Council members expressed appreciation for the efforts of York Regional Police and its #1 District, which covers Newmarket, Georgina, Aurora and East Gwillimbury.
“A very large territory to cover, and you manage to be visible in Newmarket and very active in Newmarket,” Councillor Bob Kwapis said.
“Newmarket is a pretty safe community, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have challenges,” Taylor said, praising York Regional Police’s technology and innovations. “Together, we’re in a very good shape. Can’t thank you enough.”
