Halifax regional councillor for Bedford-Wentworth, Jean St-Amand, has received feedback from constituents regarding the police’s communication about an armed individual in the area last weekend. St-Amand mentioned that residents had posted on social media about the situation before the official alert was issued.
Over the weekend, an emergency alert was issued in Bedford, N.S., prompting residents to secure their doors as authorities sought a man following a shooting in the Annapolis Valley. A subsequent wider-reaching alert was sent out half an hour later, leading to the man’s eventual arrest.
The suspect, Ryan Alexander Cole, appeared briefly in Digby provincial court on Monday and is currently in custody until his next court date on August 25.
St-Amand expressed interest in discussing the timeline of events related to the emergency alert with the city’s chief administrative officer to understand the coordination between the alert system and responding officers better.
Police in the Annapolis Valley responded to a report of a woman shot in South Farmington on Saturday. The suspect fled in a damaged Mazda sedan towards Halifax, where he abandoned the vehicle near Sunnyside Mall after colliding with a tree.
Cpl. Mandy Edwards of the RCMP explained that alerts are strategically targeted based on factors like the suspect’s location. Alerts aim to inform the public and provide guidance as needed, although they may not always contain detailed descriptions. In addition to alerts, law enforcement also utilizes social media and traditional news releases for communication purposes.