Three bear spray incidents 24 hours apart in Saskatoon, becoming ‘quite common’ on street

In a 24-hour span, Saskatoon had three separate incidents involving bear spray.

It all started Monday at 12:30 a.m., when a home was shot at twice in the 1000 block of 23rd Street West, and the suspects sprayed the substance into the home through a bullet hole.

The next two incidents came in the evening, at 9:30 p.m. in the 3400 block of 8th Street East and at 11 p.m. in the 800 block of Sauer Lane.

Saskatoon police said the three incidents are not believed to be connected in any way.

Randy Huisman is the superintendent for patrol and traffic divisions.

He said the substance is becoming more common when they do their patrols.

“Our offices are finding that bear spray is becoming quite common out on the street,” Huisman said. “We’re finding a lot of people are in possession of bear spray .. it’s become quite commonplace over the last three or four years.”

Huisman said most sporting goods stores in the province carry bear spray, and there are legalities behind purchasing the weapon, as it’s categorized under the Canadian Criminal Code.

He said when officers are put through their training, the substance is discharged to show the effects to officers first hand. He said the effects could be incapacitating.

“Something in your eye that burns, and times that by about 100. It’s almost absolutely incapacitating for a human being when you get a good dose of bear spray, or pepper spray in your eyes.”

Huisman said there has been a stepped up enforcement of the substance, and people are now seeing the weapon listed more in their releases.

When it comes to weapons they are finding on the street, Huisman said it does less damage than guns, or knives, but that doesn’t mean the substance should be overlooked.

“Without your sight, it’s a very scary situation.”

When a person is found to be in possession of bear spray, they’re subject to criminal code charges such as possession of a weapon dangerous to public peace, carrying a concealed weapon, and assault with a weapon if it is used on another person.

Bear Spray not easy to get a hold of

Although the substance seems easy to acquire when it comes to purchasing the item, there are some legalities around the sale.

Preston Crossing Canadian Tire manager Tetchi Garrido says they sell the product, but it’s not actually available on their floor.

Consumers need to go to customer service, and have to present a photo ID over 18. They also have to leave information such as full name, date of birth, address and phone number.

They also mark down serial numbers for each product, and they need to sign their forms before the purchase.

This creates a paper trail, just in case there is an incident that needs to be tracked.

“When something happens, they can go back to it and see who purchased (the product),” Garrido said.

Under the Pest Controls Products Act, bear spray is only available in Canada from authorized vendors and consumers need to sign the Notice to Purchaser Agreement outlining legal uses and a liability warning before the purchase is completed.