At the Calowna Costume store in downtown Kelowna , B.C., it’s all about make-believe, but the criminal activity shop owners like Kerri Brandel have to put up with is far too real.

“It’s so defeating,” Brandel said. “We have security film. We have to put bars up. People have doorbells to let certain customers in, certain customers not in.”

Brandel has owned the store for more than three decades but says she’s never experienced so much crime like the past few years.

“We actually had somebody break in three months ago,” Brandel said. “Then we’ve just had another window smashed and this is all coming out of a little business profit that there is hardly any of to begin with, let alone the safety of our staff and customers.”

On Monday, RCMP will present mid-year crime stats to city council

See Full Page