'No safe haven for villains in Jamaica'

PORTMORE, St Catherine:

SENIOR SUPERINTENDENT James Forbes, commanding officer in charge of the Community Safety and Security Branch of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), has issued a strong warning to criminals who prey on communities across Jamaica.

"We are going to take them on (and) bring them down. There will be no safe haven for them," Forbes warned while addressing the launch of the Morris Meadows Citizens' Association neighbourhood watch programme on Sunday.

Forbes, who was the guest speaker at the launch, which was held in the community, said the JCF, led by Commissioner of Police Owen Ellington, will not stop until "every single" community is taken back from the criminals.

He said the police have already begun the assault on crime by increasing the number of patrols, raids, curfews and launching of neighbourhood watch programmes across the island.

Forbes said for the first quarter of this year, some 72,488 patrols were conducted, an increase of 2,585 compared with the corresponding period for last year.

neighbourhood watch projects increase

Meanwhile, the number of curfews increased to 11 for the first quarter of this year, up from three for the corresponding period last year.

The number of neighbourhood watch programmes that were launched also increased to 11 for the first quarter of this year, up from two for the same period last year. Morris Meadows became the 642nd neighbourhood watch programme to be launched on Sunday.

Forbes also urged residents not to allow their communities to be classified as the once "créme de la créme", as other communities in Portmore, which have been taken over by criminals.

" ... The place to live was Independence City, Caymanas Gardens and Waterford, which were known as the créme de la créme ... . I remember those days and slowly we watched those communities drifted and are now classified as garrisons," he said.

A similar warning was also issued by Minister of National Security Dwight Nelson, who said the hallmark of a good neighbourhood watch is when residents take a proactive approach in eliminating any signs of crime.

" ... Too often we see wrongdoing and turn a blind eye because we see it as trivial, but these trivial activities lead to major crimes," he said.

Nelson was also supported by member of parliament for South St Catherine, Fitz Jackson, who urged residents to protect their assets by being vigilant.

Earlier on, Dave Kelly, vice-president of the Morris Meadows Citizens' Association, said in recent times the five-year-old community has been plagued by break-ins, hold-ups and stalking of persons by criminals.

"The police alone can not prevent these criminal activities," he said. We have now opened ourselves to this new partnership."

Meanwhile, Senior Superintendent Collin Pinnock of the St Catherine South Police Division said there has been an overall seven per cent reduction in crime in that area. He said murders decreased by 38 per cent and shootings were down by 17 per cent.

"This partnership (neighbourhood watch) will help to reduce crime (even further) in this area," he said.