Philipsburg:--- With the spate of armed robberies and house burglaries that are being committed far too often, the local police department said that crime has in fact decreased this year compared to the same period last year. Chief Commissioner of Police Peter De Witte and the head of the Detective Department Denise Jacobs told SMN News in an exclusive interview on Monday that burglaries have decreased by 15% compared to the same period last year. Both top cops said that some 18 suspects were arrested for burglaries and they managed to solve more than 80 cases of house break-ins. The police arrested 25 suspects that are the main suspects of most of the armed robberies, solving over 40 cases of armed robberies. The figures they said showed a decrease in 4% of armed robberies compared to the same period of 2010. De Witte who just celebrated his first anniversary as the Chief of Police on St. Maarten said the police department is very concerned with the amount of crimes that are being committed on a daily basis but severe emphasis is being placed on upgrading the police department for 2014.Jacobs said that while there is public perception that the crime rate is escalating, the police she said also feels that every robbery and other crime that are committed on the island is one too much. De Witte said that the situation does create a sense of insecurity but the police he said works with numbers. The top cop said each and every robbery or house break-in is too much especially when people's rights and privacy are violated.
The police they said are mostly worried about the brutality that takes place during these robberies and house break-ins since it happens in peoples home and during the day time. Jacobs said the police is doing all they can to reduce these incidents. Asked why these incidents and the arrests of the perpetrators are not being reported. Jacobs said the police have nothing to hide and they are trying to be as transparent as possible. She said in several instances the detectives work overtime to catch the criminals causing them to file their reports late. The policy of the Government and Police is to make sure they are informed and to be transparent. While the police is only one partner they are all working together to identify the social aspects of the crime and juvenile delinquency.
The intention they said is to work harder on crime prevention which involves the development of the people, to provide a social structure, while the police will work on stopping or preventing the crime.
Jacobs said all the social partners such as the schools, the community and associations have to come together if they are to better improve the safety and security of the people. The time she said has come for community policing but there must be communication between all partners. The lack of communication Jacobs said is what is hindering progress, while she agreed that everyone is working very hard, they need to bring their efforts together to become more efficient. De Witte said one of the setbacks of the police is that they are too shy of their success because they have not done enough to report their progress.
Asked how the lack of prison space is affecting the work and progress of the police, Jacobs said the police department just continues to work and tries not get distracted by the lack of cells. "We know when we arrest these perpetrators they cannot commit any robbery or house break-in while in the police holding cells."
Chief Commissioner of Police Peter De Witte said each and every time the tripartite committee meets, the lack of prison space is on the agenda. He said the Prosecutor, the Police Chief and the Minister meets monthly and the lack of prison space is discussed in each meeting. De Witte said while prison space has to be created by the Minister of Justice, the police and the prosecutors feels just as responsible for the inadequacies of the system and they are doing their best to make sure the criminals are put away.
De Witte said the aim is to have a professional police force in place for St. Maarten, one which St. Maarten never had before.
One of the projects that are currently in the hands of the Minister of Justice is the police school which they want to launch by the first week of August 2011. De Witte said when the Minister takes a decision on the establishment of a police school St. Maarten and the BES islands will work together on the project. Students who want to be part of the police force would only have to spend like 2 months in Curacao while the rest of the training will take place locally. In the meantime, the police department is expected to get at least 10 new police officers from Holland on a temporary basis. De Witte said St. Maarten already requested 20 officers but he is not sure if the added manpower will be here by the end of the summer. He said another 18 students are scheduled to leave shortly to join the police academy but they will be there for at least two years.
The top cop said that the police force needs to have 389 persons on staff but right now there is only 189.