THE Guyana Police Force ‘E’ Division (Upper Demerara-Upper Berbice) has recorded a significant decrease in youth involvement in criminal activities as well as several other categories of serious crimes, compared to the same period in 2018.

In an exclusive interview with the Guyana Chronicle, Commander of ‘E’ Division, Linden Lord, related that several youth initiatives are paying dividends and have proven to be a very effective crime-fighting technique.

Lord believes that youths need to be kept meaningfully occupied, or they will turn to illegal activities. The division is currently supporting and has initiated on its own, a few youth groups in Linden. “That is basically to get those youths to have something meaningful to do, rather than using up their energy doing the wrong things and then it will benefit them in the long run, where they can give an account of themselves,” he said.

One youth group that is making significant strides is the Wisroc Police Youth Group. The youth group is currently engaged in an agro-processing project and the youths have related that the project is transforming their lives drastically. They are currently processing and packaging green seasoning and pepper sauce and are selling these commodities in their communities. The ingredients for the products are produced by the same youths on a plot of land in Block 22, which they managed to acquire. Seeing how successful this project is, they will soon commence a fruit juice project and they are optimistic that this too will create a growing clientele.

In addition to the agro-processing project, the youths take part in other social and educational exercises such as camping, marching and impromptu speaking which aim to build their self-esteem. Secretary of the group, Zeekhariah Williams, said that joining the youth group is one of the best choices he made in life and it has transformed and improved his entire persona.

He also sees it as a means of keeping the youths off the streets, since participating in unconstructive activities such as drinking, smoking and gambling, often lead to committing petty crimes. “Before I joined this youth group, I was this quiet, shy person and now since I have joined it, I have become more open. I find it easier to talk to people and I’m calmer and in this way I am able to get more friends and it helped me in certain life skills such as farming,” he said.

In addition, Lord said that the ranks are also putting in their lot and he is seeing more dedication and professionalism from his subordinates, especially the 32 ranks who were promoted on spot, last December. “You find more professionalism from a lot of those ranks who are promoted, they now get a sense of responsibility, we found that their work attitude and their work ethics would have changed,” Lord related. To further push the ranks, regular instruction classes are held where they are reminded on how important professionalism is, especially when dealing with members of the public. The ranks are also exposed to training on a regular basis in Georgetown.

Recognising that Linden is not the entire division, Lord said that strides have been made to also keep crime low in outlying and riverine communities, especially those where there is no police presence. He personally would have visited several of these villages, such as Muritaro, 47 Miles and Mabura, to reassure village leaders and residents that committing a crime, has serious implications. He has also implored Toshaos, who are also rural constables, on the importance of reporting crimes.

The spanking new modern police station has also proven to be an asset in crime fighting, since ranks are more comfortable and the environment is more conducive for them to effectively perform their roles. The $117 M spanking new edifice, was commissioned last October and has a special room for domestic violence cases, a witness protection room, a case management room that is fully automated, a public management room, a listening room, rooms with one-way glass for suspect identification and training room for ranks, amongst others. “The station is more public-friendly. The station has most of the sections that any modern police station would have, we are very much comfortable,” Lord said.

The division would have also recently established a mobile police outpost on the Linden Soesdyke Highway in the vicinity of Bamia. The outpost is in operation for 24hrs and ranks are engaged in traffic patrols throughout the day. The primary purpose of the outpost is to monitor criminal elements entering Linden and to make it difficult for suspects to escape. “I think it is very effective, it sends a message that, look you can’t come into Linden and be allowed to do nonsense and get out back as easy as you think,” Commander Lord said.

The comparative figures for crime in the region show that murder and robbery have decreased when compared to the same period last year. In all of the categories of serious crimes, the highest figure reported is 12 for break and enter larceny. The category for rape however shows an increase of five cases, with eight being reported for the same period this year, compared to three that were reported for the same period last year.