BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THE rising incidents of gun-related crime in St. Kitts and Nevis have reached the level where every national, citizen and resident should not only voice concern on their safety and fear of criminal elements, but they must also join the bandwagon in the fight against all forms of crime.
For too long gun-related crime has been plaguing the Federation and it seems to be that most, if not all, law-abiding individuals are at the mercy of those brazen criminals who are bent on disrupting the peace and tranquillity once enjoyed by all and sundry.
In recent years, the homicide rate has been fluctuating with the worst being 2011 when a record 34 murders were committed, which had seen St. Kitts and Nevis being rated among the top murder capitals in the world per capita. Today, there have been 14 murders recorded for the year, and if a comprehensive strategy were not devised and executed soonest, the Federation may definitely surpass that figure.
It is therefore incumbent upon the Government to provide the High Command of the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force with the necessary resources to efficiently and effectively prevent further homicides, raise the detection rate and bring to justice the perpetrators of those unsolved crimes, even if it means soliciting outside assistance.
Suggestions have been coming from all strata of society, with some calling on the Government to seek help from America’s Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United Kingdoms’ National Crime Agency. One individual had even suggested employing the famous retired Senior Superintendent of Police Reneto Decordova Valentino Adams of Jamaica, who reportedly had been associated with bloody, violent incidents such as the shoot-out between police and gunmen that left 27 people dead in West Kingston in July 2001; the killing of seven men at a house in Braeton, St. Catherine four months before, and the deaths of four people in a house at Kraal, Clarendon two years later.
Another has been relentlessly suggesting that the thumb and index finger of all individuals found guilty of gun crimes be chopped off so that on return to society they would be incapable of snuffing out lives. Also, a number of individuals are suggesting that help be sought from the Regional Security System.
But in fairness to the Commissioner of Police (Ag), Stafford Liburd, and other members of the High Command, they should be given the opportunity to execute the institution’s recently announced crime strategies.
Last night (Apr. 20) on ZIZ TV and Radio, CoP (Ag) Liburd, in the presence of Assistant Commissioner Ian Queeley and Superintendent Hilroy Brandy, both of whom are responsible for Crime on St. Kitts and Nevis respectively, informed the nation about the Force’s plans in tackling the current crime situation.
He warned the criminals that their days of crime have ended, that they would be identified and found, would have no rest, prosecuted and taken off the streets of the Federation.
Liburd told the nation that they have short and long-term strategies to address the crime situation, noting that in the implementation of the former they had identified hotspots where the Force would coordinate efforts and department resources to prevent and detect crime.
He informed that they would also be implementing traditional and modern policing methods within neighbourhoods, which would eventually lead to better cooperation between members of the Police Force and residents of various communities. He further informed that the public would see an increase in police presence in hotspots and in the vicinity of schools.
“Our pledge to the people of this great Federation, many of whom are our neighbours, relatives and friends, is that public safety is our number one priority. Over the past several weeks we have been developing specific strategies to address public safety issues in our Federation.
“We started by looking at best practices internationally, which has resulted in me last month inviting Public Safety consulting experts from the UK with considerable Caribbean police experience. The time of their arrival could not be better, as we have had two senseless tragedies over the weekend,” Liburd said.
He declared that the long-term strategy would be addressed at a press conference in the near future and promised that the Federation would no longer be defined by the past, because “we will chart a new course”.
The 14 individuals who have lost their lives are as follow:
1. Devon ‘Kobe’ Griffin (31), who was shot on Friday, January 9 near his Rawlings Village home in Nevis while driving his bus;
2. Elroy Malone (54) of Willett’s Project, who went missing on January 3 and whose partly decomposed body was discovered in Amsterdam Ghaut on Tuesday, January 13;
3. Partly decomposed remains of Basil Alfred Phipps (53) of Saddlers, whose partly decomposed body was found in Wharton’s Hill (White Gate area) on Monday, January 19;
4. On Thursday, January 29, Javan Bartlette of Bath Village was gunned down in that village;
5. Kevin ‘Judgment’ Francis (26) of Parsons Village was killed during a shooting incident in Sandy Point dead on Tuesday, February 3;
6. Irvin ‘Junie’ Greene (56) of Main Street, Old Road was discovered in his home by police with a bullet wound to his head on Thursday, February 12;
7. Livingston Moore of Bird Rock was shot dead in Conaree around 1:00 p.m. on Monday February 16;
8. On the following day, Feb. 17), 26-year-old Shawn ‘Handsome’ Phillip of Douglas Street Newtown was shot to death at Baker’s Corner shortly after 8:00 a.m.;
9. Andres Alexander Douglas was shot dead in St. Pauls between 5:00 and 6:00 a.m. on Wednesday, February 25;
10. On Saturday, March 1, 19-year-old Jason ‘Bobo’ Francis of St. Paul’s/Parsons was shot dead in St. Paul’s;
11. On Saturday, March 14, Bar-B-Que vendor Malcom Cozier, also known as Malcolm Dyer, of West Bourne Ghaut died at the JNF Hospital after being shot in the vicinity of his home on March 7;
12. Popular Nevisian shopkeeper Pablito ‘Pabby Hanley Cornelius, 64, was shot to death in the yard of his Fountain home in Nevis on Monday, April 6;
13. Bank of Nevis Credit Manager 57-year-old Everette Hanley was shot to death near his Hamilton Estate home shortly before 10:00 p.m. on Friday, April 17; and
14. On Sunday, April 19, 42-year-old Jeffrey ‘Rownie’ Daniel was gunned down while on the verandah of his Water Works home in Upper Cayon.
This publication would like to suggest that in addition to 20 years hard labour for anyone caught in possession of a firearm, a 10-years sentence should be included if they do not provide the name of the person from whom the firearm was bought and/or how it arrived in the Federation.
It is now up to the citizens, and not to forget the media, to assist the new Commissioner (Ag) and his team in their relentless fight against crime to which we all will benefit. We therefore must give them a chance to prove themselves worthy of executing their mandate and stop withholding information that is pertinent to prevention, detection and successful prosecution.
