ACTING Commissioner of Police, Seelall Persaud yesterday told media operatives and members of the Guyana Police Force at an awards ceremony to mark the Force’s 175th anniversary that the statistics are showing there has been an increase by 25% in gun-related crimes in the Police “A” Division.The ‘A’ Division stretches from Conversation Tree on the East Coast to Dora on the Linden-Soesdyke Highway and is said to be largest police division in the country.
The police have longed analysed the situation and reported that wherever there is a hike in economic activities, there is also a likely increase in criminal activities.
In ‘A’ Division there have been robberies, gunning downs and the discovery of bodies with suspected gunshot wounds, among other gun- related crimes. In addition, police in ‘A’ Division through their patrols have been able to recover several firearms through roadblocks, stop and search activities and intelligence.
The Commissioner was however quick to point out that the same ‘A’ Division showed an overall decrease by 2% percent in overall criminal activities. Those ranged from robberies, murders, frauds and other activities which attract police attention.
According to the Top Cop, in addition to ‘A’ Division’s 2% decrease in general criminal activities, all other divisions have recorded tremendous decreases in criminal activities. However, there is some challenge with the Police ‘F’ Division where the figures reveal that there is some increase in criminal activities.
The ‘F’ Division accounts for the interior locations where the police have readily acknowledged that at times patrolling and policing the areas could be challenging. The rough terrain is largely responsible for the police being unable in some cases to promptly reach areas where a crime was reported.
Like ‘A’ Division also, there are lots of activities that are ongoing in those areas, particularly mining and other activities which account for persons being in possession of large sums of cash and precious minerals.
With the absence of certain social services being readily available in those areas also, certain crimes such as unlawful wounding, abuse and rape take a while before they are brought to the attention of the police. The area is also plagued with the challenge of reliable communication services which hamper the work of the police in the division.
With respect to traffic, the Top Cop noted that there has been an increase in accidents, including fatalities, and the traffic department will be increasing its activities through education and enforcement.

(By Leroy Smith )