Guns, money, drugs, and other items seized by he Saskatchewan RCMP earlier this year in Prince Albert. (submitted photo/RCMP)

By Nick Nielsen

gun crimes

Recent incidents pointing towards rise in randomly targeted gun crimes

Sep 16, 2025 | 4:47 PM

Prince Albert’s top cop is addressing concerns after several recent incidents have suggested an increase in violence against the general population in the city and across the province.

Last week near Weyburn, a woman in an SUV was killed after being struck by a bullet on Highway 39. Police still don’t know if it was accidental or deliberate. A man in Prince Albert was recently shot by someone in a passing vehicle. The incident occurred during a string of attempted and successful carjackings in the city that involved the use of a gun. Last month in Saskatoon, a 75-year-old woman working in a community garden was assaulted by a 27-year-old assailant she didn’t know.

According to statistics provided by Saskatchewan RCMP, violent crime has been on the rise since 2018 when 16,791 violent crimes were reported within the province. It’s been a steady increase since then with 21,907 violent crimes reported last year. Assaults in Saskatchewan have gone up for the last three years. So have assaults with weapons causing bodily harm. Research shows criminals are significantly more likely to be victims of crime than the general population, and the majority of violent crimes are committed by someone known to the victim, but these recent isolated incidents are changing the public’s perceptions about ‘stranger attacks.’

Prince Albert Police Chief Patrick Nogier said a decade ago, it would be rare to pull firearms off the street and even rarer that people were using them in a public venue.

“I don’t know if it’s because of a desensitization to what we’re seeing on social media that allows people to want to use guns. Is it easier access to firearms, is it that the penalties aren’t stiff enough? These are all part of the discussion about why firearms are in our community and people have a disposition to use them,” Nogier said.

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Most of the guns that are involved in crimes are tied to the drug trade, according to the police chief. He believes that’s part of the reason the public seems to be getting targeted more often.

“There’s a lot of violence that occurs within gang channels. A lot of violence that occurs between criminal elements, and they choose to use firearms to protect themselves in that capacity. Now, where you see that then transcending into the public domain is when individuals on drugs or individuals that are not working from a solid psychological state and choose to use that firearm to harm community members. So, trying to put your finger on exactly why has been very, very challenging.”

As part of the ‘Police Chief’s Luncheon’ hosted by the Chamber of Commerce earlier this week in Prince Albert, Nogier revealed stats that show almost all of the guns that have been seized because of violent crimes can be traced back to the United States. While cracking down at the border isn’t going to take the guns off the streets tomorrow, Nogier believes something at the federal level would help limit them to begin with.

“I think even as a federal government, is gun legislation going to be the panacea (solution) that creates all the social ills and evils associated with guns? Not sure, but what I can tell you is that we’re dedicated to ensuring that people that do use guns, we’re going to be able to track them, we’re going to trace them, we’re going to connect them to other crime scenes, and then we’re going to hold them accountable by the Criminal Code.”

As for the public feeling uneasy about recent events, Nogier said it’s imperative that crimes and suspicious activity is reported as soon as possible. He said there is an apathy right now when it comes to reporting crimes because some people think nothing will get done, but Nogier explained even if an officer can’t attend in short order, at least being aware of a crime can help the police take a proactive approach.

“We are frequently looking for individuals and wanting to connect with individuals that have information that pertains to illegal gun use or illegal criminal activity. So, making sure that people trust the police to come and tell us about what they know in the community… it allows us to make sure that we’re being very thorough in our approach and have the best return on that investment.”

Nogier reiterated the intelligence component plays a key role in law enforcement’s ability to respond to criminal activity.

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Nick.Nielsen@pattisonmedia.com