Two men "well known to police" were taken into custody following separate arrests on the same day last week.
The first incident saw a 30-year-old Langford man arrested Thursday afternoon around 1 p.m., on an outstanding warrant for theft under $5,000. Police executed a warrant to enter a residence on the 2000-block of Sunderland Rd. in Langford and arrested him without incident.
He now faces charges of possession of stolen property and an additional charge of theft under $5,000 and was remanded in custody.
"Targeting prolific offenders is a priority for the West Shore RCMP," Const. Alex Berube said in a release. "We call them prolific offenders because they are responsible for the vast majority of property-related crimes in our communities. When they are out of jail, they have our full attention and when they re-offend, we take them back into custody."
The second incident happened about 8 p.m. in View Royal. RCMP officers responded to a report from an alert citizen of a break-and-enter in progress at a home on Helmcken Road near Watkiss Way and found the back door of a vacant home kicked in.
They arrested a man on scene who was dressed in black clothing and recommended charges of being unlawfully in a dwelling house and possession of methamphetamine. The man, of no fixed address, has a history of committing property crimes, Berube said.
"Public awareness is key in helping us identify and arrest those prolific offenders," he said. "The public is very helpful when it comes to being alert and paying attention to what is going on in their neighbourhood."
On that topic, he said participating in Block Watch programs and practising some simple security precautions can make a difference in helping deter would-be thieves.
"Keep some lights on surrounding your homes … sometimes prolific offenders may take advantage of the dark for their crimes," Berube said.
To find out more about the Block Watch program, contact the West Shore RCMP's community policing section at 250-391-3327.
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