Police net 222 burglars in two years
(CNS): The police have arrested 222 individual burglars over the last two years, many of whom have been charged and jailed. According to the newly released crime statistics for 2016, break-ins continue to dominate offences, despite a dramatic drop in the numbers from 2015 to 2016. Burglary fell by 33% in 2016 compared to the previous year, but police management have said this is still too high, and a drop in the numbers is no comfort to the victims of a crime that is being fuelled by high levels of drug misuse.
Speaking at a press conference to reveal the crime statistics, Police Commissioner Derek Byrne noted that there are significant numbers of people with substance abuse problems who are committing burglaries to get goods or cash to buy or barter for drugs. This means the police cannot fight this crime alone, he said, and the RCIPS must work with other partner agencies to deal with the rehabilitation of people who are addicted to drugs and alcohol.
Despite locking up hundreds of burglars over the past two years, the police dealt with 440 break-ins in 2016 (down from 652 in 2016) and 62 attempted burglaries (down from 110 in 2015), but this means that altogether over the 24 months, there were 1,092 burglaries and 172 attempts to break into homes and businesses, which is staggeringly high for a small community.
The police said that even with the roughly one-third drop in numbers last year there was an increase in burglary reports toward the end of 2016 and into 2017, and the RCIPS will continue to concentrate efforts to prevent further increases and continue a trend of reduction.
The Neighborhood Policing Department is launching some new anti-theft and burglary initiatives, and is encouraging people to make their homes and businesses more secure. But law enforcement and crime prevention cannot address the burglary problem, the police management team warned.
“Substance abuse drives the incidence of burglaries and most property crimes; it follows that enforcement must be followed by rehabilitation and treatment of addicts,” the police said.
The new crime statistics released for 2016 show an overall decline in serious violent crime by 29% but overall crime has increased by 15%. Although police have had real success in taking firearms off the street, having seized 15 guns last year and five already in 2017, firearms offences are fuelling the increase in crime. The incidences police dealt with relating to guns increased by a whopping 90% last year compared to 2015.
There were two murders last year compared to three in 2015 and gang-on-gang violence fell, but firearm offences are causing real concern, with guns being used in personal and domestic disputes. “Combating illegal firearms remains a top priority for the RCIPS, and we are working with customs to address this national security threat,” the police said.
The commissioner urged the community to help and said the police want to work with the people to reduce the threat of guns. He admitted that the lack of investment and commitment to community policing in the past has created some problems, reflected in the increasing level of violence his officers meet when they go out to a crime report. But he did not think the community policing was completely broken.
“And we will fix it,” he said, as he pointed to the importance of building trust again to address serious crime.
“We need the community to tell us where to find illegal firearms so we can remove them,” he said. The RCIPS management team said that they are in the process of organising a gun amnesty as one element in the fight against illegal firearms.
Anyone with information about crime can call GTPS at 949-4222 24 hours a day, or anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 800-8477(TIPS).
Category: Crime, Crime Prevention
Statistics. If you want another you have 24 months, approximately 350 Sworn members of the Service, which brings to a grand number of 0.026 percent arrests per member approximately per month. That is less then nothing. If you dig into how many of these arrests you will see a further poor results. Touting great job and social ills is poor
Get a clue. Did you actually LOOK at the statistics sheet before you typed? Police arrest far more people than just burglars. Blaming the police for crime is poor when little is ever done about the social ills.
Most of them are Jamaican.
Well here are a few unanswered (but relevant) questions concerning these statistics.
1) How many arrests were made in those 24 months?
2) How many of the 222 were arrested more than once in that timeframe for burglary?
3) How many of the 222 were arrested for other crimes as well?
4) How many were already out on bail when arrested?
5) How many have previous criminal records, and how many are ‘repeat offenders’?
6) How many have more that ‘3 strikes’?
7) What statistics can be provided on the demographic of the offenders?
a) Nationality
b) Gender
c) Type of criminality
d) Age-group
e) Repet offenders
f) Seasonal fluctuations
I think that this type of information helps the public to become more aware of what they are dealing with and how best they can protect themselves and their property.
Those numbers give me no sense of security as the statistics are lacking in at least 4 important areas.
The reported burglaries involve hundreds of thousands of dollars in property theft and property damage. The police collect that information when a burglary is reported but they have no interest in informing the public of that number. The police have also conveniently not indicated what percentage of the stolen items is ever recovered. My guess based on the experience of friends and family is that the police allow the thieves and the fences to keep pretty much everything they steal and fence. That means that burglary is still highly profitable for both thieves and fences. (Everybody knows that stolen property is the number one export of the Cayman Islands and the hidden third pillar of the economy.)
The police also do not provide any information showing either the percentage of those arrested for burglary that are ever charged or the percentage of those arrested that are ever convicted. My guess is that those numbers are also close to zero. The other thing that is not mentioned is that a large percentage of the burglaries that occur are never reported as people simply have no faith that the police will ever do anything even if they show up and take a report. On the bright side, once the new ‘caution’ system is in place there will never be any prosecutions for burglary or home invasion and nothing will ever be recovered.
Spot on. Theft/insurance fraud is the oldest business in Cayman and it thrives.
Let us see some statistics please on, how many are still in prison,how many are repeat offenders, how many are on bail, how many males or females, and how many by nationality etc. How can this be if Northward only can only accomodate just over 200?
Why are they stealing and not working ? oh but dont worry we just going “caution” them now!!!
15% increase in crime… great job PPM!
There is a link between construction booms and burglaries. When Kimpton was being built there was a break in spike in the area, it stopped as the building finished.
Where do majority of construction workers come from….? Yep you got it.
Wondering if you have any facts to back that up or perhaps you have gone Trumplike?…Remember not liking Jamaicans (whom I presume you are referring to) does not prove that they are guilty of the crime wave you suggest. Unless you know someone who has stolen from there, in which case you should have reported that crime, then your argument is just hot air and racism.
Yes great job PPM paying for all of Mac’s imported status holding social dependants.
Good work to the RCIPS officers, they are like Sisyphus rolling a boulder uphill where burglaries are concerned. They always end up dealing with the worst social problems that the government has failed to manage, like drug abuse and domestic violence and mental illness. Just like that metaphorical boulder, we know what else rolls downhill and the police are the ones cleaning it up.
Correction Cayman society has not dealt with the ills mentioned in your post. Until our society truly embraces change nothing things will remain the same, which is truly disheartening.
No one is saying that these “ills” have been dealt with, only that police are the ones who have to clean up the messes created by them.
Could we please have a breakdown by nationality?
So you can make racist comments? Get a life…the causes matter, not the nationality…it might hurt you to know that most of them are Caymanian regardless of their surnames.
Does it really matter?
Yes it helps us to determine if immigration controls might lessen the threat in relation to certain jurisdictions, and whether some of he criminals can be deported before they reoffend.
You may want to really check your background and see if you may also end up on immigration watch list…..be careful what you wish for.
The crime in Cayman Islands are not due to immigrants; as immigrants have jobs.
The crime is due to the people who believe they were born privileged and need not work; believing the government hand me downs is theirs to have and free to squander.
They complain about receiving $150/ biweekly and that not enough, it cannot buy anything they say.
Now, who is more likely to steal?
Immigrants cannot come without a valid and vigorously scrutinized work permit, they cannot visit without a valid police record (be reminded, I just visit) and you don’t need to take a police record to US embassy…Canadian Embassy nor even to get Schengen visa and many like myself have all the above.
Get the facts straight; crime is the people who thinks they own it “Mines”….which, is where people go to dig for coal. But, do we even know the difference, I think not. Because many of us don’t believe in being educated because ” we’re pettigree” and all else is not; So, why do they come and get jobs and settle? Because some feel that they should not do some of the jobs that others are willing to take on because they are too proud, yet still not able to take on higher paying jobs because of another problem “qualifications”. But, no one wants to talk about thathe, right? Where’s the education for the Accounting Jobs, Teaching Jobs, Legal firm jobs, Policing Jobs, Medical Jobs….because you cannot walk into any of those organizations and say, I wants to be the manager; to manage what? You are not learnt, you wasted your time….
So, who robs people’s houses….EMPLOYED OR UNEMPLOYED OR UNEDUCATED! To clean toilet in Cayman islands and looking a work permit they want you to have subjects, to to construction work theyes wants ompteen certifications by recognized institutions. But, yet still these are the people who you think is going to steal?
Think again my friend, check the nest….Alligators eats their own eggs before anyone could get close to it….
Be wise in your thinking and fair in your judgements.
People who come have to come to jobs and they survive.
The ones who wants to wear jacket and tie without a CXC/ GCE OR even AS’ Level subject much less A’Level or Diploma much less Associate Degree worse case scenario a Bachelors Degree are the ones who will steal to look like they got it all together. People who come to work don’t watch anything, they work and take care of their own and make sure their family happy and they are ok with that.
The competency of the Police Service is very low because that the only organization that the lower ranks recruited needs Bachelors Degree but, the pretty face brought in to lead are clueless. So, what’s going to happen. One fool makes many, If you hire me and tell me what to do I’ll do your foolishness as long as I get to keep my job and feed my family….it’s that simple…
Wise up little bird….Eagles are smart creatures!
It really doesn’t matter unless they are not Caymanian and repeat offenders then they need to be deported. We don’t need to not can afford to keep “rehabilitating” foreign criminals.
If burglary is being driven by drugs, how does cautioning an offender stop burglaries?
Congrats RCIPS. New leadership is proving the right results.
didn’t realise the new RCIp leader has been in the job 2 years, LOL
???? He’s only been here since November