No breathing room for thugs
Published:Friday | July 23, 2010 | 12:00 AM
Daraine Luton, Senior Staff Reporter
Police Commissioner Owen Ellington pledged yesterday that gains would not be eroded as the police keep up their assault on criminality across the island.
"Let me assure the public that we will use every lawful means at our disposal to secure their safety and security as we continue these very important operations in re-establishing security and order in this country," the commissioner said during a press briefing at his Old Hope Road headquarters.
Yesterday, the top cop rolled out a series of measures which he said were aimed at crushing criminality across sections of the island.
The strategies involve curfew operations which are to be implemented when the intelligence indicates these are necessary, as well as regular cordon and search operations.
Street-crime units, as well as the Flying Squad, will be deployed. Security checkpoints will also be established and greater emphasis placed on community policing.
"We are pursuing a very aggressive, coordinated and comprehensive investigative strategy against key criminal actors," Ellington said.
At the same time, Major General Stewart Saunders, chief of defence staff, said the Jamaica Defence Force "will continue to support the JCF in our present endeavours and we will continue to do so until such time when crime has reached tolerable levels in our society".
Peter Bunting, the opposition spokesman on national security, said the strategies represent "good short-term approaches" but noted that they must be replaced by a more sustainable crime plan driven by the Ministry of National Security.
Extension bid falters
The security forces had requested that the 30-day state of emergency, first implemented on May 23 and then extended for another month in June, remain active until August 21.
However, the Government failed to secure support from the parliamentary Opposition, which said it needed more and better particulars to agree to the curtailment of freedom.
More than 4,000 persons have been detained under the state of emergency, 128 of whom detention orders were issued against by the minister of national security.
Of this number, 60 were in custody up to press time yesterday, 16 of whom have been charged with serious offences such as murder or shooting.
At the height of the state of emergency, the police asked many of the detainees, whom they listed as persons of interest, to turn in themselves.