THE recent release of shooting suspect Chaka Chase by the DPP is an indictment on the police force and the way they conduct their affairs.

The DPP in making this bold move would have seen through the police case that there was not a ghost of a chance of them securing a conviction. There was insufficient evidence to commit to trial far less to secure a conviction; hence, the decree to release the suspect and the foregoing of a trial.
The point is that the police have to undergo a complete overhaul of their operations both in the initial stages of making an arrest as well as carrying out modernised air- tight criminal investigations. These are the hallmarks of good police work measuring up to that of the ever changing, criminal community out there. Failing this we would be in for a long night of sorrow. In the first place, the corporal was negligent in his duties. He should not have approached that vehicle. Rather, they should have called out for the occupants to exit with their hands above their heads. A suspicious vehicle packed with potentially well armed, dangerous individuals and the police being devoid of any backup, the police should never have approached such a scene. The situation was too dangerous; it was simply asking for trouble. The police were sitting ducks. That is why the criminal in Rambo style could have seized the opportunity and shower the police with a hail of bullets.
Gone are the days when the police can call on a suspect and he calmly surrenders. Criminals of the kind we see in Guyana today are bold in their actions and so the police must rise to the occasion; they need to be ahead of the criminals’ game.
Secondly, drastic changes have to be made in the way the police carry out investigations. In order for the lawmen to make out a clear case against a suspect, the investigative phase must be modernised. There has to be  a direct move away from the brute force of yesteryear when you can beat a suspect into oblivion and have him sign a confession statement. These so-called confession statements do not carry weight in a modern world of policing. In fact, only 25% of confession statements are admissible as evidence far less to gain a conviction. These are the tell-tale truths our lawmen must measure up to.
Chaka Chase might very well have been the one who shot Corporal Cleito, but for the sloppy police work of the police pinning their hopes on a silly confession statement, things fell apart. Right now criminals gloat they’ve killed a peace officer while at the same time got away with their arsenal of weapons.
However, I must caution them that they have won the battle but the war against crime is not over. We must take back our streets from criminals.