BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – ACTING Commissioner of Police Stafford Liburd last evening (Apr. 20) issued a stern warning to criminals that their days of disrupting the peace and tranquility of St. Kitts and Nevis have come to an end and no effort would be speared in removing them from the streets of the Federation.
“Criminals will be identified and have no rest in St. Kitts and Nevis. Your day has come to an end. We will find you, we will prosecute you and take you off the streets. The soul of our Federation belongs to the people not the criminals. One murder is one too many. However, we want the people of our Federation to know that St. Kitts and Nevis is a safe island to live, work, visit and conduct business,” Liburd expressed during a national address aired via ZIZ Television and Radio.
The COP (Ag) made the address on the heels of a weekend which saw two individuals being murdered; one on Nevis and the other on St. Kitts.
Flanked by two members of the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force’s upper echelons, Liburd informed that short and long-term strategies to address the crime dilemma have been created.
And in highlighting the various prongs of the short-term strategy, he spoke of improving the relationship between police and the community, increased police presence in hotspots and utilising the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) system.
“We have identified hotspots where we will coordinate efforts and department resources to prevent and detect crime. We know crimes are being committed and we will focus our efforts on preventing those crimes and pursue, arrest and bring to justice those who choose to commit crime. We are implementing traditional and modern community policing methods in our neighbourhoods. Policing is not about occupying neighbourhoods, true policing is about serving our neighbourhoods. True community policing has worked around the world. If done properly, it will work here.
“True community policing empowers both the community and the officers, it creates the environment for true collaboration. Officers know the community and the community knows the officers. We have already begun to place extra police in key locations where crime is occurring. You will see the reassurance of officers near to the areas with lots of citizens, including schools. You will begin to see more officers walking the streets in key areas. You will see more patrols in key areas. I have instructed the deployment of a command vehicle.”
The resource that lies within the people of the land, according to Liburd, is another factor that is integral to an active and successful fight against crime.
“Lastly, our partners include you the people. If you have any information regarding any crime, please contact the confidential Crime Stoppers line on 1-800-8477. Your phone number cannot be detected.”
Liburd expressed his belief that the short-term strategy would address the “immediate concern of our people” and that the long-term strategy would be addressed at a press conference to be held at a later date.
“We have an opportunity in St. Kitts and Nevis because it is truly a new day. We will no longer be defined just by the past, we will chart a new course. It is truly a dawn of new era of accountability and responsibility in the police service.”
