Crime monster in St James under control - Frater

Keisha Hill, Gleaner Writer

MONTEGO BAY, St James:

ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER of Police (ACP) and Commanding Officer for St James, Denver Frater, says following a number of initiatives orchestrated by the division, the police have been able to significantly curtail the crime monster and restore calm to the area.

"To support the development, Commissioner of Police Owen Ellington met with us here in Area One as well as the High Command, and we looked at the policing ability to effectively service the kind of development that is taking place. Out of that discussion, significant improvement has been done to the capacity and capability of the police response in St James," Frater told a Gleaner Editors' Forum held recently at the Sunset Resort and Spa in Montego Bay.

Based on statistics provided by the St James police, 80 per cent of the murders committed in and around Montego Bay are the handiwork of criminal gangs operating out of the inner-city areas.