By Adrian Frater, News EditorWESTERN BUREAU:
WHILE IT is not yet official, there are clear indications that the parish of St. James, which was rocked by an unprecedented 106 murders last year, will be getting a new police chief soon.
The Gleaner has been reliably informed that Superintendent Newton Amos, who was the parish's commanding officer for the past eleven months, will be heading back to his old St. Andrew South Division, making way for an unnamed senior superintendent to take over in St. James. "It is a done deal. Superintendent Amos will be out of St. James within a few days," said a usually reliable top-level police source, who shied away from speculating on the reason for the impending transfer. "Transfer is a routine thing in the force so I am not going to ascribe any reasons for this transfer."
While refusing to disclose the name of the officer who will replace Superintendent Amos, the source did admit that it would be an officer with solid credentials. According to him, Police Commissioner Francis Forbes is quite concerned about St. James' escalating murder rate and wants to arrest the situation urgently.
DECISION
"A decision has already been taken on Superintendent Amos' replacement but it is not for me to say who the person is," the source said. "What I can tell you is that the parish is in for some high profile attention in both manpower and other needed resources."
Superintendent Amos and his trusted lieutenant, Deputy Superintendent Derrick 'Cowboy' Knight, who had previously proven to be an effective team in the tough St. Andrew South Division, were both sent to St. James in early 2003 with a mandate to reduce crime, especially murders, which had reached a then all-time high of 83 in 2002.
However, despite their success in penetrating some of the parish's tough crime-infested communities and recovering record amounts of guns and ammunition, the duo seemed powerless to put a dent on the wanton killings, which climbed over the 100 mark for the first time last year.
While Superintendent Amos blamed the spate of killings on influential drug dealers, who have managed to flourish in open defiance of the law, prominent community leaders such as Chamber of Commerce President Winston Dear, North West St. James Member of Parliament Horace Chang and JHTA President Godfrey Dyer, have regularly been calling on the police to find suitable measures to stop the carnage.
With Superintendent Amos set to walk out of the equation, residents of the parish are now waiting with bated breath to see if his replacement will enjoy greater success in the bid to help Montego Bay reclaim its former 'friendly city' status.
Superintendent Amos going back to the St. Andrew South Division
