A Hanna woman was given a 14-month conditional sentence after pleading guilty to a number of charges relating to the theft of wire from oil lease sites in the Three Hills and Hanna area.
Wanda Charlton appeared in the Alberta Court of Justice in Drumheller on Friday, September 22. She was sentenced for theft of a motor vehicle, break and enter, failure to comply with an undertaking and failure to attend court.
Charlton was facing charges stemming from an investigation by the Southern Alberta Crime Reduction Unit (SACRU) regarding thefts of copper wire from oil lease sites.
On December 16, 2021, members of SACRU observed a male and female enter an oil lease site east of Three Hills.
When the covert police vehicle approached the subjects fled back to their vehicle and left the lease site. Officers confirmed wire had been cut and removed. Later that afternoon the RCMP attempted a traffic stop with the suspects travelling on Highway 9 near Beiseker.
The female suspect, who was driving, pulled over, however when the officer approached, the suspect vehicle sped off.
The couple were arrested at a wire recycling business in Calgary the following day.
Charleton was given a 14-month conditional sentence, where two months would be under house arrest and two months would be with a curfew.
She is to have no contact with Tyree Ewing and is not to attend at oil and gas properties or metal recycling businesses.

Members of the Drumheller RCMP detachment held a series of Town Hall meetings in the hamlet of Rosebud, Village of Morrin, and Town of Drumheller between September 25 and 27 as part of the detachment’s policing priorities.

This is the second series of Town Hall meetings the local detachment has held this year, with the first three meetings being held in the villages of Carbon and Delia, and Drumheller.

“Crowds were small in size, but we anticipated that based on the attendance at our last meetings (in January), and the size of the communities,” S/Sgt Harms tells the Mail.

He adds, despite the small audience, it is important for the detachment to engage with the communities within its area.

While these meetings serve as part of the policing priorities outlined for the 2023-2024 fiscal year, they also allow the local detachment to share key messaging with residents and speak with residents to better understand areas to “improve or focus” efforts. It also provides an opportunity for RCMP members to meet with the public in a less formal setting.

S/Sgt Harms attended all three meetings, and at each meeting there was at least one other RCMP member, one to two administrative staff, and Rural Crime Watch representatives. The new Victim Services Program manager was also in attendance at the Drumheller meeting.

“The meetings were very positive and we had great interaction with the attendees whom, for the most part, showed a lot of support for their local police officers and appreciation for the meetings,” he shares.

Officers heard some concerns and suggestions from those in attendance regarding increasing traffic enforcement in particular areas, and about increasing visibility. They were also directly able to answer questions from those in attendance.

S/Sgt Harms says the detachment has mandated itself to hold a minimum of four Town Hall meetings during the fiscal year, and is hopeful additional meetings will be held later in the year or early in 2024.

These meetings will help the detachment to gather input ahead of determining its policing priorities for the 2024-2025 fiscal year.