The RM of Portage la Prairie is looking to an app to help curb crime in the community.

Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to purchase the Crime App from Crowd Security, which would create a dedicated mobile app specifically for the RM for $10,000/year with a minimum 3-year commitment. This is money that was already set aside in the 2023 budget.

"We're trying to do what we can with the limited tools and resources that we have available to us," says Reeve Kam Blight. "We're just trying to increase the communication in the Rural Municipality, give members a safe environment where they can report suspicious activities or crimes that are taking place, and they can communicate with the rural municipality members only. That information can then be passed along to the RCMP."

To ensure that only RM residents can post on the app, a verification code will be provided to new members via RM staff. Blight believes RCMP will also have access to the app.

"We're just trying to increase the communication. We're trying to use the resources and tools that are available to us to help our citizens be more aware and help their neighbours," says Blight. "There's a lot of flexibility provided into this app as to what kind of information you can get. You can make your areas as large or small as you want. It's going to be a bit of a learning curve, but it's something we're going to try."

The app will soon be available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.

 

In response to Canada's Online News Act and Meta (Facebook and Instagram) removing access to local news from their platforms, PortageOnline encourages you to get your news directly from your trusted source by bookmarking this page and downloading the PortageOnline app.