Officers pledge to reduce crime in Nevis for ‘08
By Terresa McCall
Reporter-SKNVibes.com
~~Adz:Left~~ Charlestown, Nevis: While there was an increase in the number of reported crimes in Nevis for 2007 was recorded over 2006’, police officers there have committed themselves to working toward lowering the number of incidents of crime, for 2008.
Head of the Criminal Investigations Department in Nevis and the Spokesperson on Crime for the Nevis Strategic Planning Group, Inspector Hilroy Brandy, in an interview with SKNVibes.com, explained that in 2006, crime in Nevis stood at 270 and saw an increase of 14 crimes, or 5.1 per cent, in 2007.
He further explained that there was a decline in the 2007 detection rate over that of 2006. Of the 270 crimes recorded in 2006, 135 were detected registering a 50 per cent detection rate while in 2007, 129 were detected which marks a 45.423 per cent detection rate. Hence, the detection rate last year in relation to 2006 declined by little more than 4 per cent.
Inspector Brandy noted that the officers of the Nevis Division are discouraged by the increase in the number of reported crimes and the decrease in the detection rate. On the contrary, they are committed to the task which lies ahead and have formulated a new strategy, he outlined.
“The Strategic Planning Group realizes that there has been an increase in the number of reported crimes and a decline in the detection rate in 2007 over 2006. We are in no way discouraged. We have gone back to the drawing board, re-strategized, assessed our failures and have charted the way forward. We are aiming to reduce crime by 7 per cent of the 2007 figure and at the same time to improve our detection rate to a minimum of 50 per cent,” Inspector Brandy was quoted as saying.
He made an appeal to the public to continue building on the relationship which has been fostered between them and the police because, as he explained, the improvement of this relationship would have a positive impact on the island’s crime rate.
“We are again calling on the public to assist the police in fighting crime while strengthening the relationship which has been developed over the past five years. We have seen this relationship grow from strength to strength and greater collaboration can only help to make the relationship even stronger which would in turn positively impact the number of reported crimes in our land. Remember, we are in a service industry and any bad publicity could drastically affect our growth,” Inspector Brandy concluded.
