At least eight people have been evicted from a block of flats in St Stephen’s because they were suspected of being involved in drug dealing.
On Wednesday, RCMP and court sheriffs were helping provincial public safety officers evict tenants from the building on Schoodic Street. At least one person was put into an RCMP vehicle.
St Stephen’s Mayor Alan McEachern said the building had been the source of many complaints in the past due to heavy traffic, loud fights and parties “at all hours of the night” and had a reputation as a “drug den”.
He said there was nothing police could do, so neighbors resorted to filing a complaint through the Safer Communities and Neighborhoods program, a provincial program that allows the province to close properties suspected of illegal use. activities, for up to 90 days.
“They can approach it differently and deal with the landlord,” MacEachern said in an interview Wednesday.
The SCAN program is not a criminal process and no charges can be brought through it. It is not necessary to prove criminality in order to effect an eviction.
A SCAN investigation is triggered by a complaint from anyone who believes illegal activity such as prostitution and drug trafficking is taking place.
MacEachern said SCAN officials have been investigating the building for several weeks and found enough evidence to serve the landlord with the closing order on Wednesday.
Corporal David Penny of St. Stephen RCMP said five officers in three cars were on Schoodic to assist SCAN officers and “keep the peace.”
He said one person who was in the building but was not a tenant was arrested on a warrant on an unrelated charge.
No RCMP investigations related to that building were underway at the time of SCAN’s eviction, he said.
What happens next?
MacEachern said he wasn’t sure what would happen to the people who were evicted. According to the province’s website, SCAN is “working closely with social and community agencies to ensure that other arrangements can be made for those affected by the building’s closure.”
MacEachern did not have details on those arrangements when he spoke to CBC News on Wednesday.
He said he knew there was a risk that this would not solve the problem, but rather just displace it.
“It’s something we’ll learn in the process,” he said.
Tenant rights advocates have previously spoken out against the SCAN process. They said the criminal courts and the Tenancy Act were already in place and skipping the criminal trial for suspected criminality was not fair.
Notice to Landlords
However, the mayor said he is not worried about the possibility of some people being wrongfully evicted because he believes in the system. He said he believes SCAN officers, who are public safety officers, did their due diligence to confirm illegal activity was taking place.
He said he hopes this sends a message to landlords that their properties will be affected if illegal activity occurs there.
MacEachern confirmed that SCAN officers are monitoring another building in St. Stephen’s, but did not share details because the investigation is still ongoing.
Penney said he had no information about RCMP involvement in another SCAN operation in St. Stephen.
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