In May 2025, Estevan experienced a nearly threefold increase in assaults, contributing to a 13 per cent rise in crimes against persons compared to the five-year average.
Assaults nearly tripled in Estevan last month, prompting police to monitor a broader rise in crimes against persons, which are up 13 per cent compared to the five-year average.
So far in 2025, there have been 73 reported crimes against persons, compared to the five-year average of 64.
Estevan Police Chief Jamie Blunden said the spike is largely driven by a rise in assault cases, which increased from eight in May 2024 to 21 in May 2025.
"You'll see that the assaults from May of '24 to '25 have increased almost three times," he said during the June board meeting. "We've gone from eight to 21. And then we look at the year-to-date for assaults, we're just slightly up. It was 52 back in 2024, right? Now 54."
Blunden said about seven of the May assault cases were domestic related.
"Three of them were spousal domestics. Two of them were the same couple. Charges were laid in all three cases," he said. "There’s one where a parent and a youth at 15 were involved. There are no charges there. It was dealt with without having to lay any charges."
Police also responded to multiple assault complaints at Gibby’s, resulting in several charges. An investigation is ongoing into a separate incident reported at St. Joseph’s Hospital, and additional cases were reported at Estevan Comprehensive School.
"So a whole smorgasbord with respect to the assaults," said Blunden. "Not one specific incident or sort of theme. It was from all over. So summer months are here and it is something that we'll keep an eye on."
The year-to-date total for assaults is up 18.9 per cent compared to the five-year average of 45.4. Assaults causing bodily harm also doubled, from a five-year average of four to eight in 2025.
"Although it's a 100 per cent increase, there are only four differences there," Blunden noted. "So we're keeping an eye on the crimes against persons, specifically the assaults."
Blunden also confirmed one homicide occurred in May 2025.
"We do have a murder on from May of 2025," he said. "That's one of the things that will drive our crime stats up. It’s one incident, and that was family related. So there’s no concern amongst the community about somebody being out there. They were known to each other."
Mischief and willful damage cases rose from 13 to 20 last month, though the year-to-date total is down, from 56 last year to 50 in 2025, below the five-year average of 57.6.
"I have no response to that with respect to why," Blunden said. "It just happens to be maybe May of 2024 was just a little slower. So overall, year-to-date, we're OK."
The five-year average for theft under $5,000 is also up, from 65.4 to 86 so far this year. But that's still a 17 per cent drop from 104 at this time in 2024. Monthly thefts also decreased, from 27 in May 2024 to 15 this year.
Blunden said public education remains a key tool for prevention.
"Part of that right now is we're concentrating on those minor thefts, talking about keeping your sheds locked up in the back, making sure your lawn mowers and bicycles are put away," he said.
"If you're in the back gardening, your front door should be locked. Your garage in the back should be locked. You should have all your stuff inside of it, out of sight, out of mind."
He added that storing valuables in a car trunk isn’t always safe.
"A lot of people think that because it's in the trunk, it's good. But if you have folding seats that are not locked, you can get into the back trunk."
Police continue adjusting their messaging to fit local trends.
"If we see it’s students at the schools, we’ll go make sure we do those lectures," Blunden said. "If it's domestics, maybe that could be the messaging that we use through our social media platforms."