SUPT. CLAUDE Samuels, head of the St. Andrew South Police Division, yesterday unveiled a new crime plan to tackle the increasing number of homicides there.
At an emergency meeting with his top officers yesterday, he disclosed that seven murders had occurred in the division from Friday to Sunday.
He warned that while the police were effecting their new crime-fighting strategies, they would retaliate if they are challenged by gunmen.
"Law-abiding citizens need not fear, but for the gunmen, we will be coming down on them very hard. They will be harassed," Supt. Samuels warned.
Det. Inspector Michael Phipps said that since January, there have been 52 cases of homicide in the division, an increase of nine when compared with figures for the corresponding period last year.
But the police are enjoying a better rate of success in clearing up murders this year, compared to last year.
"We have arrested 32 persons in connection with the homicides committed since January. At this time last year, we had only arrested 16 persons in connection with the 43 murders committed," said Det. Insp. Phipps.
He said the murders were scattered throughout the division, mainly in Seaview Gardens, Union Gardens and Cockburn Gardens. The murders in those areas have been linked to gang violence.
"We are now reviewing the motives behind these murders, with a view to implementing preventive measures," the detective said.
Deputy Supt. Fitzgerald Barrett said that in the weeks ahead the police would be involved in a series of spot checks throughout the division, targeting suspects and flushing out the perpetrators of crime.
