There have been twice as many gun-related robberies or attempted robberies this year so far compared to 2022, it was revealed at last night’s public meeting on the spike in crime.
Chief superintendent Brad Ebanks told those gathered at Constitution Hall and watching online that 31 incidents were reported to police – 16 more than the same period last year.
However, there have been 11 arrests – eight Cayman citizens and three from overseas – and four people have so far been charged, he said.
Some of the outstanding matters are before the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and police are awaiting instruction on further charges.
Ebanks assured attendees that the force is taking a “vigorous approach” to battling the crimewave and the Crime Task Force will “fully concentrate on this serious, serious matter”.
Best foot forward
About a dozen officers attended the meeting on Thursday, 13 July, at the invitation of Minister Kenneth Bryan, MP for George Town Central, and Minister Sabrina Turner, MP for Prospect.
The two lawmakers, who represent of some of the Cayman Islands’ most troubled areas, organised the event to allow the public to hear from those responsible for crime control.
Superintendent Roje Williams, head of uniform and special operations, said the police service has given extra resources to the firearms units, Crime Task Force and CID.
The hours that certain units operate have also been altered, he said, highlighting community police officers who now patrol in the evenings when most of the robberies have occurred.
Williams said the police service has been publishing more firearms convictions to remind people that anyone in possession of an illegal gun faces upward of 10 years in prison.
“We are ensuring that we’re putting the best foot forward to ensure that we get persons behind bars and investigate the matters accordingly,” he told the meeting’s attendees.
The superintendent added that police held a drug operation over the weekend and officers found several controlled substances.
In addition, officers are working with WORC and Customs and Border Control to investigate people born overseas working without or outside of the rules of their employment permit.
He said police have assisted with “getting five persons off of the island that doesn’t need to be here”.
Inspector Ian Yearwood, in charge of community policing department, said some areas of George Town such as Windsor Park are “bursting at the seams” and parking is a struggle.
“We’ve been doing some door to doors… and to be quite frank, we are letting you know, look, you need to find somewhere else to park before it gets to the issuing of tickets.”
He also highlighted Washington Boulevard as an area which experiences high levels of anti-social behaviour.
“We are working with other agencies to see how we can eliminate or mitigate these areas,” Yearwood said.
Following the initial brief on police tactics to beat the surge in robberies and gun crime, several community police officers stood to introduce themselves to the audience.
Time for answers
Attendees and those watching on social media were then given the opportunity to ask questions and make comments to the ministers and police officers.
Topics included the use of pepper spray and mace for self-defence, urgent clearing of abandoned vehicles, media access to information, and increasing trust in the police.
Questions were also asked on demographic of criminals, cutting down on speeding particularly outside schools, faults in the CCTV network and legalising recreational drug use.
The Compass will review these topics in more detail in upcoming articles.
One topic that reoccurred during the meeting was the need for more officers patrolling the streets, especially in hotspot areas.
Chief Superintendent Ebanks said the police service is short of 13 officers but plans to begin recruiting more this summer so that there will be 24 full-time community police officers.
“That, for me, is a passion and a priority for us,” he said, adding that when officers take a rest day or go on leave, there currently are not enough officers to cover all Cayman’s beats.
Meanwhile, Inspector Yearwood said there are six vacancies for community safety officers aged 18 to 40 to support uniformed police officers.
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