PM warns of threat posed by organised crime amid site tour of Gregory Park attack

 

Prime Minister Andrew Holness is again warning that organised criminal gangs pose a serious threat to national security.

 

Mr. Holness was speaking while on a tour of Walkers Avenue in Gregory Park, Portmore, St. Catherine, following an attack by gunmen early Saturday morning.

 

A taxi operator was shot and killed and several houses torched during the attack.

 

Mr Holness said the attack was connected to gang activity in the area.

 

He condemned the incident and urged residents to cooperate with the police to find the perpetrators.

 

"Communities have a duty and a responsibility. Those young men and women who felt so emboldened that they could go and purchase gasoline, put them in containers, walk come to the area, in open view of everybody, and proceed to light houses of afire, that is like saying, we fear no one. Who is directing them? Who are they connected to? They have mothers and fathers too, brothers and sisters. And what are their families saying about that?" he lamented. 

 

The Prime Minister said he has been briefed by the Police High Command on the incident which left 47 people, including nearly 30 children homeless. 

 

"They have several of the gangs in the area under investigation or before the courts using the anti-gang legislation. We are doing as much as we are empowered to do within the law," he sought to assure.    

 

There is heavy police/military presence in the community which has been under a 48-hour curfew since 6:00 p.m. Saturday.

 

 

Prime Minister Holness has blasted critics of the government, accusing them of blocking the State from implementing tougher sanctions against organised criminals. 

 

"We may need to create new laws so that we are able to act in a preemptive way to treat with these terrorists and criminals. But of course, there is an element in the society who does not want us to empower our police force to be able to act preemptively. Because the truth is that some of these people who have committed these crimes are on the radar, but you are not empowered to act on them until they would have committed themselves in this way," he noted. 

 

Although mostly tight-lipped about what measures will be put in place, Mr. Holness said the country will continue to build its intelligence and database to better fight crime. 

 

 

Police Commissioner Major General Antony Anderson said the Police High Command has identified some of the suspects involved in the invasion of Walkers Avenue in Gregory Park.

 

He said women were among the group of hoodlums. 

 

"But that's indicative of the sort of threat that we have  been facing as a police force and we will continue to do so. We're up to the task. We will go and find these people. We already engaged some of them this morning. They managed to escape, but we will be on them. We have identified a number of them and we'll be following up on that," he noted.    

 

He said the names of the suspects will be released Tuesday.

 

 

 

Member of Parliament for East Central St. Catherine Alando Terrelonge and several members of the police high command were among those accompanying Prime Minister Andrew Holness during the community tour.

 

Mr. Terrelonge said the government will be providing the necessary assistance to residents who suffered losses from the fire during Saturday's attack in Gregory Park.

 

He said he has already started providing relief supplies to affected children. 

 

"We have started distributing back-to-school supplies from as earlier as Saturday. Yesterday evening, even during the rain, I was here as well delivering food supplies as well. We've assisted some residents with cash also, just to sort of help them back on the way. And PM, you're aware, would have spoken about the social housing programme and getting all our agencies on board as a part of the relief effort."