The recent spate of robberies has impacted Cayman’s prized tourist attraction Seven Mile Beach after a man was robbed at gun- and knife-point on Sunday night.
Cayman Islands Tourism Association president Troy Leacock has expressed concern about the crime situation.
“[I am] thankful that no one has been seriously injured. Personal safety is one of the attractions of vacationing in Cayman and all efforts must be made to maintain a safe environment for visitors and residents,” Leacock said in a comment to the Compass.
The robbery on Sunday followed four incidents on Friday, 3 Nov., including the attempted robbery in which businessman Kevin Gourzong chased off a gunman with a machete.
Also on the weekend there was an attempted murder in West Bay. A resident on Gorse Lane, off Bramble Close in the Birch Tree Hill area, was shot multiple times outside a house.
Those within the community have called for greater police presence as they fear retaliation for the shooting.
Leacock, like the Birch Tree Hill residents, said he is looking “forward to hearing more from the authorities on plans for tackling crime overall and robberies in particular”.
Police Commissioner Kurt Walton and his senior command team are hosting community meetings this week on the crime situation.
One meeting was scheduled for Tuesday night, 7 Nov., at the John A Cumber Primary School in West Bay, and another on Thursday, 9 Nov., at Constitution Hall in George Town.
Police, in a short statement on Sunday’s incident, said they received a report that, at around 11pm, a man was robbed in the parking lot of Seven Mile Public Beach.
The RCIPS said that the victim had just parked when he was approached by two masked men, one of whom was carrying a handgun and the other a knife.
The robbers, police said, held the knife to the man and robbed him of a quantity of cash, before fleeing on foot.
Police said no shots were fired and no one was injured during the robbery.
One of the suspects is described as being about 5 feet, 9 inches tall, of dark complexion and slim build. He was wearing a black hooded jacket, mask, long black pants, slippers, and carrying a black handgun.
The other suspect is described as being about 5 feet, 6 inches tall, of dark complexion and very slim build. He was wearing a light-coloured T-shirt, light-coloured shorts, a black mask, black head covering, gloves, and was carrying a large knife.
Anyone with information on the robbery is asked to contact the Criminal Investigations Department at 949-4222. Anonymous tips can be provided directly to the RCIPS confidential tip line at 949-7777, or via the police website. Tips can also be submitted anonymously via the Cayman Crime Stoppers website.
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In another article today we read that expats now outnumber Caymanians.
This will no longer be a problem, if it is a problem, if this crime wave continues. Because tourists will stop coming here, so less need for foreigners to work in our hotels, expats will stop moving here and will leave.
Of course that will mean a massive hole in the government’s budget due to the drop in tourism tax, import duty and work permit fees. This in turn will reduce the level of government services to Caymanians.
I can’t believe that I am writing about crime in the Cayman Islands….”Cayman Islands Tourism Association president Troy Leacock has expressed concern about the crime situation,” as well as he should be. The one thing that Cayman could always promote and set it apart from other islands can no longer be promoted. If Kurt Walton does not step up to the plate or the Governor, you will see that dip in tourism figures start to happen. I repeat, “where are these guns coming from,” in the water at night? Are these criminals from a gang? Cayman is a small island where the word travels fast. The Government should consider putting a reward system in place for information leading to an arrest to help stem this crime that has started to take a chokehold on a once very safe environment.