A community survey done by residents in St. Stephen showed that of the more than 200 respondents at least 78 per cent said they felt scared or threatened in the community.
The survey was done by a group of citizens who both had concerns about perceived increased crime but also lived in proximity to Starshine Properties – apartments owned by an alleged absentee landlord who lives in Alberta.
16 Schoodic was the subject of a SCAN operation which resulted in the property being seized and boarded up by the Department of Justice and Public Safety. (Patrick Watt/CHCO-TV)
“A lot of residents have spent quite a lot of money on putting security, security cameras, additional lighting, and getting dogs,” said David Whittingham, the survey co-creator. “Also when you read some of the comments that came back with the surveys, the written comments say they have baseball bats at their back doors now, which they never did before.”
The survey was handed out by the individuals and eventually, it was distributed among neighbours and other residents in the community, according to its creators.
What the survey showed
About 79 per cent of respondents said they felt their quality of life had suffered. Another 88 per cent said they knew seniors who felt unsafe or threatened.
The survey reported 80 per cent of respondents found discarded drug paraphernalia.
“I think a lot of residents that have had issues in these neighbourhoods, a lot of them are in areas where Starshine Properties had buildings and still own buildings,” said Whittingham. “Some are closed up, some are still open with squatters in them.”
More than 20 properties were purchased by an Alberta woman – since then the properties have fallen into disrepair.
Steven Morgan lives across from one of them.
“There was a lot of coming and going. There was a lot of illegal activity that was going on,” he said in an interview. “The police were there every single day, and there was a huge waste of resources for emergency services.”
He lives across from 16 Schoodic, which was the subject of a SCAN-based raid in June. It was one of two properties on the street that were subject to these raids.
The property on Schoodic
CHCO-TV obtained court records that detail the investigation on 16 Schoodic.
Peace officer Timothy Sowers provided the courts with an affidavit. He was formerly a detective with the Fredericton Police Force’s major crime unit. In his report, he detailed the surveillance he conducted on the property.
“On April 12, 2024, I obtained a SCAN statement from the complainant and learned that pedestrians and vehicles are frequently observed visiting the involved address for short durations of time before leaving. Generally, less than five minutes. These activities have been going on for several months,” he said in the affidavit.
The complaint was originally filed on March 21. Between April 5 and 7, Sowers observed “considerable activity taking place.” He noted short, frequent visits, all between the hours of midnight and 5 a.m.
The property was shut down for “illegal drug activity” according to a sign outside the property. (Patrick Watt/CHCO-TV)
He spoke specifically of activity he believed to be someone manufacturing methamphetamine.
“I observed him shaking something in a container and then exiting the shed with an unknown object in his hand,” Sowers wrote in the court documents. “He bent over to cool the object in the snow. He returned to the shed a short time later with his hoodie pulled down over his head and was kneeling over, vigorously rubbing his eyes repeatedly with snow. This action resembles the actions that are likely to occur with illegal drug activity known as the “one pot meth method” or “shake and bake” where ammonia is used as one of the ingredients to manufacture crystal methamphetamine which gives off toxic fumes.”
On May 1, RCMP alongside Sowers delivered a community safety order for illegal drug activity for units one and three. Five other individuals were found inside the apartment, he said in the document.
“One female was incoherent lying on the couch and appeared to be under the influence of a drug,” he wrote, adding he spoke with Jordan who admitted she had been a drug user, mainly methamphetamine.
Community safety warnings were issued to the listed property managers, who were named in the affidavit, which Sowers said he “became suspicious as to whether either party was employed by Starshine Properties Ltd,” after they engaged in an argument over who was the legitimate property manager.
Sowers confirmed he was unable to reach property owner Annette Penkala by phone or email, the ones provided by one of the listed property managers.
Steven Morgan lives across from one of the Starshine Properties and said it has had a significant impact on his life in St. Stephen — which he chose to move to from Ontario three years ago. (Nathalie Sturgeon/CHCO-TV)
Surveillance was conducted again on May 9 and May 11, according to the documents. He observed several cars coming and going – making short stops.
“I observed many suspicious things that also caused me concern that other criminal activity related to theft and possession of stolen property was taking place,” Sowers wrote.
Communication between Sowers and RCMP Sgt. Scott MacKenzie revealed that in the month of May, police had received 21 calls for service to 16 Schoodic.
Sowers wrote through his investigation, he determined there were adverse effects on the neighbours. He also said there was a reasonable inference that “based on the totality of this investigation of the property, it is my opinion that these activities are consistent with drug trafficking.”
A sign was placed on the outside that said it was shut down due to “illegal drug activity,” and bore the insignia of the New Brunswick Department of Justice and Public Safety.
A hope for change
Morgan said the property’s purchase made him suspicious from the beginning, given there didn’t appear to be anyone maintaining the buildings.
“It’s had a huge impact on the community, actually,” he said. “Because like when you have a negligent landowner who’s just most times they aren’t even collecting their rents where people are living there … like it just doesn’t make any sense, you know, and the RCMP, they, they do the best they can,” he said
The survey showed about 57 per cent of respondents had called the RCMP, with many of them saying they called more than once. At least 19 per cent said they’ve called more than 10 times.
David Wittingham helped create the survey and also lives near a run-down Starshine Property. (Nathalie Sturgeon/CHCO-TV)
Whittingham and Morgan said it doesn’t feel like the council is doing enough to help residents feel safe or deal with the issues in the community.
They hoped delivering the survey to them would show them a picture of how the community feels.
“St. Stephen’s a beautiful town. It’s a town worth fighting for,” Morgan said. “But, you know, if the town council isn’t going to be proactive and they’re going to bog themselves down in Procedures then like, how are we going to get to the end of this?”
Mayor Allan MacEachern said he was surprised by the survey. He said the council did discuss a survey, but said they feel the money might be better spent tackling the issues directly. He added that some of the properties at the centre of some of the issues in the community are up for mortgage sale and hopefully will be fixed soon.
“These things take time to roll out depending on what it is,” he said. “It’s, you know, a lot of it has to do with housing. You know, we’re getting there on these things. There’s a lot of action on them.”
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