THOMAS

Damion Mitchell, News Coordinator - Radio

Police Commissioner Lucius Thomas is reporting that there has been an increase in the number of murders for the first three months of the year when compared with the similar period last year.

Speaking with The Gleaner/Power 106 News, Commissioner Thomas said at the end of March, there were 46 more murders than the first three months of last year. This is about 15 per cent higher than the murder figure recorded over the first quarter of 2006.

The police divisions that contributed most significantly to the increase were St. James with 10 more cases, and St. Andrew South. Hanover recorded seven more murders between January and March compared with the similar period in 2006, while Clarendon registered 10 more cases.

Commissioner Thomas was not immediately able to present more detailed information, but police spokesperson, Karl Angell, said more detailed data will be released in the quarterly crime statistics soon.

Expresses optimism

In the meantime, Commissioner Thomas is expressing optimism that the crime situation will improve. "One murder is one murder too many, but I wouldn't say worry," he noted, adding that the police had managed to 'peg back' the number of crimes in several police divisions that were showing signs of escalation.

And with an impending election period, which may attract violence, Commissioner Thomas said there was a commitment by the members of the force to ensure that there is peace at the polls this time round. Last year, the police commissioner said there was intelligence that the elections could be bloody.

Meanwhile, the police chief said the high command is continuing its efforts to rid the force of corrupt members, with 58 corrupt cops being recently sanctioned by the Professional Standards Branch.

At the same time, the high command is still pursuing its efforts to have 11 police personnel retire in the public interest.