JCF vows clampdown on ‘hustling’ cops
Published:Sunday | May 12, 2019 | 12:00 AMCorey Robinson - Staff Reporter
Even as the Police High Command has signalled that it would be taking strong disciplinary action against policemen who moonlight at the expense of their legitimate obligation to the public, some cops last week maintain that they are forced to supplement their meagre salaries.
Moonlighting describes the practice of cops doubling as bodyguards, private security guards, bouncers, or engaging in other personal business pursuits. It may also entail escort services or security detail for high-profile clients.
“The only mechanism for doing extra work is through a programme. There is a programme and a policy around extra work … and bodyguarding is not one of those things that are allowed,” said retired Major General Antony Anderson, at his first press conference last week, more than a year since taking his seat at the helm of the constabulary.
“To that extent, I have the inspectorate looking broadly at that issue to see if, when and how that is happening, and if people are doing things that are outside of the policy. That is why there is a Professional Standards Branch that deals with them,” he continued, promising increased tracking of Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) vehicles and resources.
JCF policy dictates that officers are allowed to engage in certain jobs while off duty, but that these must be police functions and also approved by the divisional commander. In other words, no contractual agreement should be made between policemen and private citizens.
However, members of the police force last week said that direct arrangements with private citizens are usually more profitable than adhering to “drawn-out”, bureaucratic JCF policy procedures.
Face to face, a constable can negotiate extra remuneration and collect at the end of the night, but going through JCF policy could take weeks for the constable to receive a meagre J$650 per hour for the job done. That figure increases with rank, the police source said.
Policemen who operate through the JCF extra-work policy must use service weapons assigned to them, said the senior policeman, who explained that divisional heads usually turn a blind eye at hustling cops.
“It only becomes a problem, for example, if the police come to lock off a party and you intervene or you are acting boisterous. Other than that, there are no real implications,” he said. “… Unless a senior officer come there and see you and decide him want to push the thing and write you up … but generally, nobody is really going to see you and trouble you.”
Anderson last week declined to comment on details of investigations into the April 27, 2019 Chedwin Park shooting, even as stories swirled on social media that one of the cops involved was a bodyguard for Sheldon ‘Junior Biggs’ Daley, the first civilian killed on the ill-fated night, which triggered a high-speed chase with more deadly consequences.
Official police reports are that a cop, armed with fifty 9mm rounds and his licensed handgun, fired at a vehicle in which three Mobile Reserve officers were travelling, causing them to crash. This was after Daley was gunned down at a party in Chedwin Park, St Catherine.
Sleuths close to the investigation declined to say last week whether Daley was wanted for any crimes or affiliated with criminal networks in Spanish Town.