My pickup and 2 of the cars that were with me
were in our view the entire time...They hit the side that wasn't seen from the river...
They are taking it Seriously up in BC...
Reward offered for capture of Chilliwack tire slasher By Tyler Olsen, Chilliwack Times October 14, 2011
The Fraser Valley Salmon Society has put up a bounty for the person or persons responsible for vandalizing the vehicles of American fishermen.
FVSS president Frank Kwak said his organization has put up a reward of $1,000 for the capture and conviction of the Vedder/Chilliwack River tire slasher. A local business has also put up another $2,000.
"It's absolutely horrific," said Kwak of the vandalism. "This is not the kind of stuff we need."
The RCMP reported on Tuesday that nine vehicles—eight with American licence plates—had been targeted. Most were parked near Keith Wilson Bridge. While the story made news in Canada and the United States, it appears the exposure didn't immediately stop the vandalism as more incidents was reported on Wednesday.
FVSS treasurer Chris Gadsden reported that more tires had been slashed around Allison Pool, on the Chilliwack River, and that an American tourist's car had been keyed.
The tire slasher was a hot topic of discussion at an FVSS meeting Thursday night.
In addition to the reward, Kwak said there have been discussions about local fishing-tourism-oriented businesses contributing gift cards to compensate those anglers whose cars have been damaged. In order to avoid false claims, Kwak noted that any such program would be limited to those victims who had already reported their damaged vehicles to the police.
Kwak was adamant that Americans need to be welcomed on the river.
"They pay good money to [fish]," he told the Times. "They ought to be able to do that in a safe manner."
Kwak also noted that the Americans contribute significant amounts of money to research conducted under a bilateral agreement between Canada and the United States.
"We certainly don't want them saying, 'These Canadians are a bunch of shoot'em up idiots and we no longer want to work with them," said Kwak.
And while several victims of the tire slashing plan to return this weekend to Canada, the publicity the vandalism has garnered in the United States—including reports on local television news—has already scared away at least some tourists.
In an email to the Times on Tuesday, Shane Young wrote: "The Boeing Fishing Club had planned a trip up to the Vedder like we have for the last 8 years, but due to the tire slashing we have canceled the trip. I have been coming up and fishing there for 20 yrs and I will not be back. I hope this will impact people in the area like the tire slashing has impacted our fishing!!"
tolsen@chilliwacktimes.com
Read more:
http://www.chilliwacktimes.com/Reward+of...l#ixzz1axyWNk5h