If a major economic downturn in Canada’s oil patch was not already enough to worry about, now operators need to be just as concerned about crack pipes as they are about cracks in pipes.

Crime at oil and gas sites across Alberta has run rampant this year, with 854 crimes reported in the first 10 months of 2016 — more than all the related crimes reported in 2015, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

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