Holness Keeps Cabinet Briefing With Security Leaders To Formulate Crime Plan

Made in JamaicaJanuary 25, 2022

In consideration of the 16 percent increase in crime as compared to the same period of last year, the Prime Minister called together the country’s main leaders in security to a cabinet meeting on Monday.

Reports are yet to be released concerning the contents of the meeting that was discussed; however, it is known that the Commissioner of Police, Major General Antony Anderson, and Rear Admiral Antonette Wemyss, the appointed Chief of Defence Staff, gave briefings at the gathering.

One thing that is known for sure though, is that what was discussed had to be about a crime plan since the murder rate in the country since the start of the year has been going crazy, leading the same period last year at this time by a 16 percent increase.

The number of murders committed since year currently stands at 112 people. As a response measure, the Government has implemented Zones of Special Operations in sections such as Central Kingston Parade Gardens and Westmoreland to help ease the violent acts.

In Westmoreland, an amount of 12 murders have been recorded to date since year which is a surprising 500 percent increase to where the number was at the same time last year, while Parade Gardens in Central Kingston has recorded several killings, making murders up by 50 percent in that area.

Trelawny also is seeing a massive increase as the triple murder which took place in the Parish recently has made the kill count soar up by 200 percent, as compared to last year.

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At the top of the killing spree is St James, with 21 murders, this number is 3 more than the amount recorded in 2021 which is 18 over the same time period.

Where other violent crimes are concerned; rape according to the Jamaica Observer has gone down by 65 percent while shootings have decreased by 14 percent, and robberies have been diminished by 3 percent in comparison to the same time last year.