PERHAPS IT is just a case of copycat criminality; or extortionists are feeling the heat from crime fighters elsewhere in the island and are now seeking fresh territory to conquer. Whatever the case, we note that the Morant Bay police have reported a move on their part to crush the emergence of an extortion ring in the St. Thomas capital.
Over the last three weeks or so, members of the business community in Morant Bay reportedly have been receiving demand letters. Perhaps learning from the experience of areas of Kingston, Spanish Town and May Pen, which have already been 'organised' by criminal gangs for extortion, the business people and the police have moved swiftly to deal with the matter.
Intelligence-driven efforts must now be made to flush out and deal with masterminds. And the police must take the necessary pre-emptive steps to provide security, if necessary with help from outside the division. In a comparatively small township like Morant Bay, it should not require rocket science or Scotland Yard to pick up information and to deal with the matter.
Too often, unlawful and criminal activities are allowed to become entrenched while law enforcement and citizens themselves turn a blind eye. Then drastic - and sporadic - corrective actions are taken, often with only limited success.
As an example, the illegal gas trade about which we have commented previously, largely left undisturbed, is well established in sections of the Corporate Area. And it is not a small operation. In last Friday's operation alone, the police seized more than 150 45-gallon drums of petroleum products from only two locations. Quite apart from the loss of millions of dollars to legitimate operators, the illegal gas trade, particularly in close-packed urban locations, is a major safety hazard.
The information officer for Operation Kingfish has also advised that the police have intelligence that income from the trade is being funnelled into the purchase of illegal guns and ammunition. This should come as no surprise. The ill-gotten gains of extortion, as well, finance gangs for the procurement of arms and ammunition which allow them to further organise and enforce. Criminality is well integrated. Law enforcement should be moreso.
A broad, holistic approach to law enforcement must be adopted and swift action taken against new illegal developments before they mature. We should move to zero tolerance as closely and as quickly as possible. And, as is well known, the certainty of being caught and punished is the greatest deterrent.
Extortionists, once entrenched, know how to send the signal that non-compliance will not be tolerated. Arrests and convictions in Morant Bay at this early stage will send the powerful signal that extortion will not be tolerated here.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
