BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THE Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force, the St. Kitts-Nevis Defence Force and, in particular, the Anti-Crime Unit have been lauded for effecting an 18 percent reduction in crime during the first 10 months of the year compared with the same period in 2012.
According to Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas – who is also the Minister of National Security – the Anti-Crime Unit “has the overarching responsibility of creating and maintaining a safe and secure environment for the people of St. Kitts and Nevis by focusing on the key areas of law enforcement and national defence.
“The role of this Unit is of critical importance in creating an environment that is conducive to economic and social development and, more specifically, to our ability to attract Foreign Direct Investment.”
And for the upcoming fiscal year, focus will continue to be placed on those youths who are deemed to be “at-risk”.
According to Dr. Douglas, who at the time was delivering the 2014 Budget in Parliament, the focus would involve the increase of police presence in schools as an active deterrent to gang-related activity.
“During 2014 the focus will continue to be on at-risk youth. Officers will be placed at certain schools to curb gang recruitment and to deter incidences of school violence.”
He indicated that for crime fighting to be effective, a “multiagency approach” is necessary.
“Being fully cognisant of this, the Anti-Crime Unit will continue in 2014 to strengthen its collaboration with the Customs and Excise, Social and Community and Education Departments. Investment in the training and development of our security officers has been a priority of the Anti-Crime Unit, and so significant resources continue to be devoted to this activity. During 2014, emphasis will continue to be placed on training in order to build capacity and the skills needed to increase productivity and effectiveness.”
Dr. Douglas explained that other areas of focus include the enhancement of the capacity of the recently-initiated Firearms Investigation Unit “to enable the Unit to build on its success so far in recovering an increasing number of weapons from our streets”, and continued collaboration with regional and international agencies as well local NGOs and the private sector.
