Regional top cops meet to coordinate crime fight

The opening of the 34th annual Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police Conference

(CNS): The Cayman Islands is hosting the 34th annual Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police Conference this week with a focus on cyber crime. The event, which is being held at the Marriott and was opened by Governor Martyn Roper on Tuesday, is aimed at fostering more collaboration between regional police services to tackle modern threats that tend to cross borders. Roper, who is responsible for the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service, said law enforcement must be one step ahead of the constantly changing threats posed by criminals.

Addressing the audience at the conference entitled, “Improving Regional Policing Effectiveness in a Changing World”, the governor noted the sophisticated technology used by organised criminal groups and the need for agencies to cooperate more than ever if they are to tackle modern day crime.

Premier Alden McLaughlin, who also delivered an address, said that every part of this region is impacted by crime and there is a wide perception that communities are less safe. But he said Cayman is on its way to cutting crime, not least because of the changes made under the current RCIPS commissioner, Derek Byrne.

He praised Byrne for engaging with elected representatives and for talking directly with the Caymanian people and said he had responded to community concerns.

But McLaughlin said there was a need to focus on the causes of crime. “The most significant contribution to long-term crime reduction is the early identification of young people at risk of offending, and supporting them to make more positive choices,” he said.

The commissioner told his regional colleagues that with the increasingly sprawling nature of criminal networks, traditional crime has given way to more sophisticated, technical and multifaceted complex crimes that cross borders and require much more collaboration “to disrupt and dismantle these criminal enterprises”.

As police adapt to the changing methods there are still some solid objectives in the fight against crime, which are to “follow the money, confiscate the criminal assets, and dismantle criminal enterprises”, Byrne said.

The conference continues throughout the week covering a range of topics, from border control and gun smuggling to at-risk youth and domestic violence.