Break-ins at Mallaig and Ashmont Fire Halls

The Ashmont and Mallaig fire halls were both targeted by thieves in break ins between Dec. 21 and Jan. 3.

Surveillance from the Mallaig fire hall shows a white truck and an individual with a red hoodie and a plaid shirt or coat.

This truck was captured on surveillance at the Mallaig Fire Hall

A suspect seen on surveillance at the Mallaig Fire Hall

According to RCMP the break ins are still under investigation but the stolen items include

• Two 1.5 amp 20 volt batteries
• Two 5 amp 20 volt batteries
• 3/8 20-volt drill
• 20 volt reciprocating saw
• Booster cables
• Security system recording device
• Halogen pry bar

County of St. Paul Council discussed the break ins at their Jan. 12 meeting, with CAO Sheila Kitz reporting that the Mallaig Fire Hall was broken in to on the same night as their Public Works maintenance building in Ashmont.

“It’s really disappointing that people break into these types of buildings,” said Kitz.

She said the administration is now in the process of getting quotes for new security systems and has received some indication from their insurance provider that premiums would be reduced by a percentage if the systems were updated.

“They [the thieves] took the card so we wouldn’t be able to see which vehicle had been there,” said Kitz.

According to Director of Community Services Tim Mahdiuk, the county is filing claims with their insurance company for the stolen property and the damages.

“It looks like our total claims will be about $7,000 to $8,000 per incident, less our $5,000 deductible. So we might get $2,000 to $3,000 back per incident,” said Mahdiuk, noting they are not able to include the staff time spent filing the claims. “But it does take a lot of time,” he said.