LangleyAdvance
Not good pets pg A6
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Thursday, June 7, 2012
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Special Olympics
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Special Olympian Chris Lawrie carried the flame from the Langley RCMP headquarters to Douglas Park on Tuesday, a five kilometre run. “Five ks is not an easy feat,” said Lawrie after the run. “But it’s for a good cause.” He was leading the team of RCMP officers and Special Olympians in the Langley leg of the Law Enforcement Torch Run. The annual fundraiser sees a torch travel across B.C., on Tuesday passing through Chilliack, Abbotsford, Langley and Surrey. Lawrie has been playing with Special Olympics teams for almost 10 years. Matthew Claxton/Langley Advance His autism kept him out of regular Special Olympian Chris Lawrie carried the torch, and his first running partner Tuesday was Const. Keith Rogers of the Langley RCMP’s organized sports, not because of a Core Enforcement Team. lack of physical skill, but because of said, noting that he’s very competitive. “It’s About 20 police officers ran with Lawrie difficulties with focus, he said. always in the fun of the event,” he said. and the Special Olympians, and they had a His parents supported him getting into Langley will host the Special Olympics BC motorcycle escort thanks to officers from the Special Olympics, for athletes with intellectual Provincial Summer Games during the summer Integrated Road Safety Unit. disabilities of all kinds. of 2013. More than 1,100 Special Olympians Following the run, the torch continued on He’s taken part in baseball, floor hockey, along with 300 coaches will be coming here to the west into Surrey and White Rock, while and soccer over the past few years, and to compete in 11 summer sports. the Langley torch bearers took time out for a recently competed on a Langley team that Events like the provincial games are supsoftball game in Douglas Park. Langley RCMP came second in a regional qualifying tournaported by a wide variety of fundraisers, members had earlier organized a barbecue at ment. including the annual torch run. the detachment and a 50-50 draw. “I love getting out and competing,” Lawrie
SPCA investigating cat mutilations here A cat killer has been active in Langley as well as in Maple Ridge, the SPCA says. by Matthew Claxton
mclaxton@langleyadvance.com
Cat owners in Brookswood and southwest Langley are being advised to keep their cats indoors after another wave of cat killings and mutilations. Similar to the recently reported attacks on domestic cats in Maple Ridge, the attacks began in February and seem to have picked up steam in May. Lori Chortyk, an SPCA spokesperson, said there were reported incidents on Feb. 22, March 23, and May 4, 19, and 29. Not every incident of dead cats can be blamed on humans, and one of the Brookswood cases may be the result of a coyote attack. However, most of them are clearly cases of human attack. In one case, a number of dead
year are being committed by the cats were found in a large garsame person or persons responbage bin, Chortyk said. The sible for the string of incidents in exact number of cats is not being Maple Ridge. revealed. The cats north of the Fraser “Some of these, clearly the River were found within a 15injuries were made by an instrublock radius between 217th and ment,” she said. 230th streets, from Lougheed This is not the first time someHighway to Dewdney Trunk one has been killing cats in Road. Brookswood or South Langley. Most had their heads chopped In October of 2010, the Langley Advance reported on a string of off, or their bodies slit from cases. The SPCA throat to tail with has records of a sharp object. “Some of these, clearly Then, the remains six incidents in July, August, and the injuries were made were placed where September that the owners or by an instrument.” year. passersby could Lori Chortyk One woman told find them. the Advance at the For example, time that she and school children her family found a local stray cat were shocked to find the remains cut in half. of a cat during their lunch break The RCMP was called in to at Harry Hooge Elementary last investigate, and police and the week. SPCA urged residents to keep Unfortunately, it is not their cats inside, and the cat killunknown for people to kill cats, ings seemed to stop. and there is no way to rule out Chortyk can’t say whether the the notion that more than one new Brookswood incidents this person is committing the attacks,
Chortyk said. “It’s unlikely that this many cases would all be the work of one person,” she said. This is a very unusual case for the investigators of the SPCA, who normally respond to complaints from the public about animal cruelty. It is the top priority for several officers, she said. There is very little physical evidence, Chortyk said. Tips from the public could very well be the deciding factor in whether the perpetrator or perpetrators are found. “The more leads we get, we can put together consistencies,” she said. In the meantime, even outdoor cats should be kept inside, Chortyk said. “I’m sure people want to do whatever is possible to keep their cats safe,” she said. If people have any information about an attack on cats, they can contact the Langley RCMP at 604532-3200 and information will be passed on to the SPCA.