Area 1 Police boosting presence, resources for Christmas season

 

The Area 1 Police say it is scaling back administrative duties to put more boots on the ground as the Yuletide season heats up, even as Hurricane Melissa poses additional challenges. 

 

Area 1 consists of St. James, Hanover, Trelawny and Westmoreland. 

 

Senior Superintendent Othneil Dobson, acting commanding officer for Area 1, says additional resources from Kingston divisions will be deployed to the area.

 

"So you will be seeing more police officers out in the town centres, out on the roads and the corridors providing that enhance security presence for us all. We also have additional resources in the form of other formations, branches coming out of Kingston; the Agricultural Protection Branch that deals with praedial larceny and another issues; the Specialised Operations, giving us additional strength in some of our areas; our BOPD (Beat Officer Patrol Division) and our military contact partners," 

 

Meanwhile, SSP Dobson has cautioned the business community to stay alert and use the services offered by the police and professional couriers. 

 

In the meantime, the SSP said the area recorded 123 murders since the start of the year. 

 

This, he said, is a 57 per cent reduction compared to last year, which is the lowest in almost two decades.