Government will be setting up a Serious Organised Crime Unit as another enforcement arm in The Barbados Police Service to bring the crime situation under control.
Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley announced that the new unit would focus “entirely on organised crime and gangs without prejudice to the work of the Major Crime and any other unit in the police service”, during a recent press conference at Ilaro Court.
Ms. Mottley told reporters that the unit was a key recommendation coming from the Independent International Police Assistance Service Report, which was executed through the British Government and the Commonwealth Secretariat.
She added that temporary posts would be created for the unit, which will operate alongside existing police divisions.
Ms Mottley maintained: “The reality is that we … over the course of the last few weeks in particular, haven’t seen an abeyance of it for about 15 and a half months, seeing a spike of crime where persons who know one another, have been the victims of murder…
“The AG will also tell you that the police have indicated to him, in very clear terms, and perhaps they need to do that more so for the public, that in many instances, the cases of what we are seeing are not arbitrary crime but are cases where people know each other, and where in some instances you may even use the word vendetta is being perpetrated. This is not the way to settle business in this country. We have law courts and therefore it cannot be in any way tolerated….”
The Prime Minister also disclosed that members of the police band will be deployed to assist with Government’s community policing efforts. “We believe that The Barbados Police Service Band, which has a history of over a hundred years, is well placed to be able to help us in that effort.
“If they need additional instruments and other things to be able to put out there so that they can give these youngsters a chance to have purpose and skills at the same time, then we will work with them to provide that across a number of communities,” Ms. Mottley said. (PR/GIS)
