The mayor of Amherst, N.S., wants to reassure the community after this week’s fatal shooting.
A shooting on Prince Arthur Street on Monday night claimed the life of a 41-year-old man. The suspects fled the scene and have not been arrested.
Amherst Mayor Rob Small said people in his city were still processing the event.
“Hearing this really came as a shock to most of us,” he said.
He said the city’s police force is committed to ensuring that the community feels safe and added that resources beyond local police are being mobilized to find those responsible.
“In fact, today I was told that we have not only the police force, but other forces and police partners who are helping us sort out all the details of this incident,” he said.
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An obituary identified the victim as Christopher Leggett, who is survived by a son.
Police said the shooting was a “targeted” incident and there was no risk to the public.
“Typically this community is quiet, everyone knows everyone, and I think it’s important to focus on this – we have a lot of good people in this community,” Amherst Police Chief Dwayne Pike said Tuesday.
“We have a very supportive community and sometimes we have to lean on that community to help us through difficult times when something tragic like this happens.”
Pike added crime rates typically increase in the spring, but he hasn’t seen anything unusual this time of year.
However, several Amherst business owners told Global News they felt unsafe, including Donna Gogan, owner of a restaurant next door to the crime scene.
“I wish I could say I was surprised, I wasn’t surprised. I expected something like this to happen in the last year or so,” Gogan said.
David Mitchell, mayor of Bridgewater, N.S. and president of the Federation of Nova Scotia Municipalities, said mayors across the province have raised concerns about crime.
“Stats Canada says that crime is down across Canada, and then I hear people feel that crime is up. And I think the difference here is that crime is more personal. What we’re seeing is more theft, more theft of property and things like that,” he said.
“We can’t ignore it by saying, ‘Statistically, crime rates are going down,’ because the government doesn’t feel that way.”
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