BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – SANDY POINT, a town along the eastern corridor of St. Kitts, some 10 miles from Basseterre, and popularly known for producing many scholars and individuals held in high esteem the world over, is currently under the microscope.
This town, which is also said to be the home of “a proud people”, has made international headlines following the robbery of 17 cruise ship tourists (including a baby) aboard a coaster tour bus while on their way to visit the Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park on Sunday, November 14, 2010.
This unprecedented and callous act, which has resulted in the cancellation of two cruise ships’ calls to St. Kitts on Tuesday (Nov. 16) and the following day, has been and continues to be condemned by all law-abiding citizens and nationals of the twin-island Federation, including those residing abroad.
But, as mentioned at a recent press conference by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Security, Hon. Sam Condor, “Our worst fear has been realised…this incident has to be used as a wake-up call…”
Indeed, this has been a wake-up call and evidence of it lies in the public’s response to the police’s appeal for information sharing, which has resulted in the arrest of four persons of interest to the police.
These arrests must go down as a record for the police; for it is the first time in many years that members of the local police force have gotten a breakthrough in serious crimes within such a short period.
However, many citizens and residents of the Federation are asking the question: “Are the police positive that the individuals held are the perpetrators of the crime?”
This question, and others, was also posed by a reporter to the Force’s High Command during Tuesday afternoon’s (Nov. 16) press conference hosted by Minister Condor.
In response to how close are the police in solving the crime, if the four individuals are just being investigated or are the police confident that they would be charged, Assistant Commissioner of Police with responsibility for Crime, Joseph Liburd said, “Yes, we have four individuals in custody and they are assisting the police at present with our investigations. We are in the infancy stage of our investigation in this matter and it is not proper for us at this stage to say how far we are. We expect to go to the end, but how far we will go with it, it is not right for us to speak at this time. We prefer to continue with our investigation and we are very grateful for the information we have received thus far.”
Yesterday (Nov. 17), in an effort to know how persons feel about the robbery and the arrest of four individuals from Sandy Point, SKNVibes visited the town and spoke to a number of residents within the community; all of whom did so under the condition of anonymity.
A young mother said that the incident has painted a very bad picture of Sandy Point.
“I was born and raised in Sandy Point. This is a town of a very proud people, but in recent times criminal elements have decided to change that image. It is very unfortunate that those tourists were robbed, and it is an act that could cause serious repercussions to our country’s economy. You see, since the closure of the sugar industry, tourism has been our main source of income. Many people depend on tourism…from the hotel industry to craft sellers, and this can cause many of us to suffer, especially since the introduction of VAT.
“Our once beautiful Sandy Point is now infested with criminals and I strongly believe that if those four men did the crime, they must also do the time.”
An older mother said, “Sandy Point was never like this! We have to take back our Sandy Point from those criminals. In the past, we used to sleep with our windows open…and at times even our doors. But today, you don’t know who to trust, you have to secure not only your earthly possessions, but also your life. I am sorry that this incident happened, and more so in Sandy Point. I’m glad that the police are on top of things, but are they certain the men they have in custody are the perpetrators?”
“The police have their work to do and all citizens of St. Kitts should render assistance in the upkeep of law and order. For too long we have remained silent by not passing invaluable information to the police whenever we would have witnessed a crime. It is time for this nonsense to stop; it is not doing any good to the image of our beloved country. The robbery of the tourists is the limit; we depend on their dollar for survival and no one should deprive us of it. Therefore, as a conscientious and law-abiding Sandy Pointer, I must commend the police for what they have done so far, but they have to make sure that they have the right persons in custody,” a young male said.
Another young male also had his say, but his thoughts are somewhat different.
“I believe it is a set-up. Look at how many murders we had over the past three to four years and the police can’t solve them. Yet, in just a matter of hours they arrest four men from Sandy Point. Not because the robbery was done in Sandy Point it was Sandy Pointers. Sandy Point is open to all and you can’t see in the hearts of mankind or read their thoughts. I would say once more that I believe it is a set-up, because the police want to show the public that they are on top of things. Let’s wait and see who they going to charge and what evidence they going to present in court. I bet you that even if they charge some of them the matter will be thrown out of court because of insufficient evidence, just like the many cases we have seen in the past.”
A notable senior scholar of Sandy Point also declared that law-abiding citizens of the community must retake their town. He is of the view that the police have done a highly commendable job and should continue along that vein.
“Kudos to the police…after a long while of, what I may term dormancy, they have shown that they can get the job done with a great deal of efficiency. I would like to see all Sandy Pointers coming together and confront the criminals who want to tarnish our good name and image. We have produced many outstanding men and women - scientists, doctors, lawyers, teachers, etc. – name the profession and we are a part of that. However, we are not a people bent on producing criminals; we must retake Sandy Point and rid it of criminal elements.
“I am saddened by this incident and sincerely hope that the police have a water-tight case when they would have taken the four men in custody to court. However, that is if they are charged and it is not just a charade to make the public believe they have been competent in their investigations. We have seen the carriage of injustice in various forms and I hope that this is not one of them.”
The four individuals were arrested and taken into custody along with a number of items during a joint operation mounted by members of the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force and the St. Kitts-Nevis Defence Force in the Sandy Point area on Tuesday, November 16.
According to the laws of the land, a suspect could not be held for more than 72 hours without being charged or released for an offence of this nature. Today, 48 hours would have been completed since the four men were taken into police custody and tomorrow is the deadline.
