Regions see dramatic decline in serious crime

… drops 46% in Reg 10, Regs 7 & 4C show 28% decline

Commander of Regional Division Seven, Dion Moore, along with Assistant Commissioners Khali Pareshram of Division Four C and Kurleigh Simon of Division 10, recently reported significant decreases in serious crime during a broadcast of Police and You. The programme highlighted a 28 per cent reduction in Regions Seven and Four C and a notable 46 per cent decline in Region 10.
According to Moore, Region Seven is very unique, in which the armed forces within that area control a vast majority of hinterlands and mining operations. He underlined that the main economic activities are gold mining, diamond mining, and, to some extent, lumber.

“In respect of crime, we are at a 28 per cent decrease in serious crime, having recorded 18 serious crimes for this year compared to 25 last year. The offences that stand out for this year are murder – we had eight murders thus far – and seven robberies under arms, along with two rape cases. For the division, the situation, I would say, is manageable. We are having a positive 28 per cent decrease in comparative serious crime.”

Moore further explained that robberies under arms were committed mainly in mining areas, not predominantly within the business hub of Bartica. For traffic, he reported 10 accidents this year, including one fatal accident, four minor accidents, and two resulting in damage.
“Traffic is not a major concern, but we have seen a new development with youngsters riding motorcycles along the avenues and streets, and we are addressing that at the moment. But all in all, we’ve shifted away from what has been normal policing to more community-orientated policing.”
He further mentioned that every single day, ranks venture into the various villages and communities, having discourses with the people, finding out what the issues are, and then addressing those issues.

In fact, he mentioned that they’ve been having tremendous support from members of the public and a number of stakeholders,” the Commander noted.
Meanwhile, in Region 10, Assistant Commissioner Kurleigh Simon said most reported crimes have either been solved or are nearing resolution.
“At this moment, Region 10 is relatively quiet in terms of crime and traffic. Early in the year, we had some unrest, but right now, we are working on rebuilding our relationship with residents in Region 10. In terms of crime, we are at a 46 per cent decrease in serious crime. Similar to Region Seven, we had three murders for the last year as against nine this year, and most of those murders were actually earlier in the year.”
Meanwhile, as it pertains to traffic, he mentioned that they are seeing an increase of 42 per cent in accidents.
Amidst this, he highlighted that what they can safely report is that despite having eight murders, all eight were solved and the perpetrators are before the court.
Simon clarified that most of the murders in Region 10 were classified as “disorderly murders”.
“Most of the murders we’re speaking about are, for instance, situations where individuals are imbibing or just socialising, an argument ensues, and then a physical altercation of some sort occurs. Mostly, it’s either stabbing or chopping incidents that result in someone losing their life… Same goes for my region,” the Assistant Commissioner said.