Crime trending down in St Mary

Port Maria, St Mary:

The St Mary police division has seen a decrease in serious and violent crimes since the start of 2020, which is a result of persistent crime-fighting and team effort on the part of law-enforcement officers.

Superintendent of police for the parish Bobette Morgan-Simpson said that the police have been vigilant in their efforts to put a lid on crime, despite the shortage of manpower.

She pointed out that figures have been trending down significantly as a result of measures that are now in place, but noted that with full cooperation from residents, there could be more success.

“We do have the issue of manpower [shortage], and we had the trainees that were very helpful to us. However, we are now down to our original numbers,” said Morgan-Simpson.

“Things are relatively calm in the parish for now, and we are hoping to keep it that way. We are plagued by domestic violence, and, as such, there is a need to reach out more to the communities in terms of mediation. There is also a need for persons to utilise the justice centre and other places that are available to quell disputes, and for intervention to take place before it becomes criminal.

“We continue to receive reports about incidents of domestic violence, and the police continue to act upon those reports. We received three vehicles recently, which will go a far way in assisting us in our crime-fighting effort. The communities of Oracabessa, Richmond, and Gayle are now the recipients of brand-new vehicles,” Morgan-Simpson said.

Since the start of 2020, the parish has seen two incidents of shooting, compared to three last year, and one case of robbery, compared to seven last year. There have been no reports of break-ins since the start of this year, although there were 11 last year, and serious and violent crimes are down by seven cases when compared to last year.