Justin Wayne Collins, a 45-year-old man of no fixed address, was arrested over the weekend on charges of assault, mischief, theft of mail and breaching a restraining order, but has since been released back to Kelowna. Supt. Kelowna RCMP Chief Kara Triance said officers have repeatedly arrested Collins and taken him to court, but he has yet to face “adequate consequences” or be placed in a mental health and substance abuse program. Mounties believe Collins’ release puts the public at risk and urged anyone who sees him breaking the law to call 911. “Collins is a repeat offender who has no regard for the safety and well-being of others,” Triance said in a news release. According to police, Collins has created 421 police records and been charged with 64 charges since 2016, for offenses ranging from violent theft to indecent acts. He remains under a number of previous “court-imposed conditions and notices of violation that prohibit his public access to businesses,” Kelowna RCMP said in the release, but added that he is “blatantly ignoring” those conditions. In May, the BC government announced an independent study of repeat offenders in the province in hopes of developing a new strategy to tackle chronic crime. At the time, Public Safety Secretary Mike Farnworth described the 120-day study as “an important initial step in a very complex issue.” But the approach has also faced some criticism, including from Nits’ilʔin (Chief) Joe Alphonse, tribal chairman of the Tŝilhqot’in National Government, who noted the apparent lack of robust indigenous consultation. The province has only promised those conducting the study that they will “reach out to key stakeholders,” including the BC First Nations Justice Council. “To me, it just seems like the same old stuff they’ve put out over and over again, the cowboy approach to dealing with justice. Over and over again they get the same results, and yet they still think it’s the answer,” Alphonse said in May .“To be creative, they need to involve indigenous leadership throughout B.C. With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Lisa Steacy
