Police in St Vincent bracing for reprisal following mass murder

KINGSTOWN, St Vincent, CMC – Police in St Vincent have cancelled all vacation and no-pay leave for officers until further notice as lawmen move to prevent possible reprisals following the murders of five people in the capital, Kingstown, on Wednesday night.

A circular issued by the Royal St Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force said that the gazetted officers also decided to restructure the leave system for police officers and that divisional commanders were also ordered to inform ranks under their command.

Commissioner of Police, Colin John, told a joint press conference with acting Prime Minister Montgomery Daniel and other members of the Cabinet that the police force had received intelligence about possible reprisals.

“And that is something that we are taking very seriously. We're also taking this shooting, these fatalities very seriously, as we do with every crime, especially serious crimes within St Vincent Grenadines,” John said.

He said that police intelligence suggests that some of the killings in St Vincent and the Grenadines are linked and the majority of major crimes are committed by fewer than 100 people.

“… less than 100 persons in a population of over 110,000 persons. So that's a small group of persons. And also, based on our intelligence, these shootings, the majority of them, they as a result of something that … happened since 2014, where some drug transaction went wrong and then persons who are friends then became foe and then it continued up to today,” John said as he attempted to assure citizens the country is “generally safe”.

John said that the police had acted on that intelligence “so much so that some persons who were killed [Wednesday night], we had spoken to them before and that … assisted in preserving their lives up to last night, based on proactive policing”.

John said that the police had received a report of gunshots in the Harbour Club area, located towards the eastern end of Kingstown, near the Grenadines Wharf and when officers responded they met four people who appeared to be dead and a fifth was transported to hospital for medical attention.

“At the end of the night, five persons were pronounced dead by the doctor,” John said.

He defended the police against criticisms that it was slow to react to the shooting.

He also said cops would be more visible on the streets and that the public might encounter some inconveniences as a result.

The killings Wednesday night brought the homicide count this year to 35, seven of which were recorded in the last 36 hours.

“It is not a good statistic. And the police, we have gone back to the drawing board. We have looked at ways in which we can improve what we are doing,” said John.

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