Acting Police Commissioner Crusita Descartes-Pelius on Monday sent a strong message to criminals amid an upsurge in gun violence.
“We will persevere. We will overcome. We need to preserve the sustainability of our country. We will take back our streets and make Saint Lucia safe for all, visitors and citizens,” Descartes-Pelius declared in a recorded statement in which she expressed condolences to those who have lost loved ones due to the violent crime incidents.
And she warned criminals intent on wreaking havoc that all lawful means would be pursued to deal with them.
“To the individuals intent on wreaking havoc, you will be weeded out. There is no room for you or your behaviour and the organisation which I lead will succeed in putting a stop to your actions,” the Acting Police Commissioner declared.
“Saint Lucia has no place other than incarceration for those who wish to operate with impunity,” Descartes-Pelius stated.
And she explained that with the help of its partner agencies, the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (RSLPF) would make it impossible for the criminals to persist.
“We will do all in the ambit of the law to deal with the scourge of gun violence,” Descartes-Pelius asserted.
At the same time, she noted that crime reduction would be impossible only for the police.
According to the Acting Police Commissioner, the crime situation was not easy, but by no means impossible.
In this regard, she called on partner agencies to cooperate with the efforts of the RSLPF, noting the need for social interventions.
Additionally, Descartes-Pelius spoke of the need to develop public resistance to criminality.
“No longer can we afford to turn a blind eye and pretend the occurrences around us do not concern us. It is time that we collectively stop harbouring criminal elements intent on destroying the very fabric of our nation,” the top cop stated.
Her complete address appears below:
We pray for your safety and the good police officers of the RSLPF … WEED OUT THOSE bad mind officers. Too much complicity with criminals.
Ah! At last. The Police admit they are not in control of our streets.
Madam Commissioner I do like your message but let me remind you that if nothing is done or you have no plan to execute then you will soon become a laughing stock to the criminals. Those guys are all well organized, they do not sleep. They know their objectives and they have a plan to execute to achieve their objectives. Unfortunately, the police has not shown any plan or a way of combatting crimes in slu. It was obvious on Saturday, the criminals move freely in slu and they are at liberty to execute at any time they want. We had four locations and in Babonneau in particular we were just lucky we did not have more fatalities – they did not shoot to miss in Babonneau. Those guys were serious and they were shooting to kill. Unlike our so called “Prime Miniister,” I hope you are ready to challenge those idiots on the streets. Lucians are living in fear and everyone is scared to leave their homes since they do not know when it will hit home for them. Our only hope is you right now and I really hope and I pray that you come out and win both the battle and war on those guys – Good Luck
All dem ladies just busy making speeches. PJP take ppl time to do a speech and more shooting after the speech. SMH. We eh paying all u to TALK or Make Speeches. DO SOMETHING.
We have over 80 percent of private sector workers earning 2 to 3 dollars ec an hour working 12 to 16 hour shifts without over time and you think that crime will stop so how are people able to pay bills, provide for their families with wages like that . The business organizations that oppress and expliot the work force are the real criminals
Too many times LAWS are passed in Cabinet – too many times, these LAWS are not meted out in the courts, or by the police, etc. Our justice department is just as bad as the PM – no power!!
Time to LAY THE LAWS, and with impunity!! Time to update whether to set bail or not, time to update imprisonment, with no bail, and all the rest …
…they never took control of our streets, they never own the streets, no all of these shooters are street bandits.
King Charles 111 I can give you a list of countries who is making the same or less per hour and the crime rate is not even close to the one in St Lucia so please stop making excuses for these thugs
@HN exactly you are correct – these thugs do not desire to work a legitimate job. I see several individuals posting that hourly wage increase would eliminate crime — really????. The thugs and the demons along with some of their parents— viey sutweeez will suffer tremendously the blood of the victims will be on their hands and that is a fact. Par Dee Poor Jab when severe destruction and damnation destroys every last one of them and their generations to come will be cursed forever – there will be absolutely NO PEACE for them. Everyone will reap as they have sowed – no one escapes If you plant corn it’s impossible to harvest bananas-that is a universal law.
I remember when I was making peanuts with credentials. However, I lived within my means and I did not envy any one and what they had. I did not envy the neighbor’s stove, clothes or refrigerator or bed room furniture and I lived well – Amen. Some Lucians want to command high wages and they are severely allergic to education and higher learning — some can not read or write and refuse to go to school..mwee meem.
There are plenty of individuals who would like to attain higher education but have to make do with YouTube university and the like because the costs are so prohibitive. And when there are opportunities such as scholarships, it is the case that the public hears about them most times after the fact or less frequently, too close to the deadline creating a mad dash to get documents ready and the ultimate recipients are unsurprisingly relatives of officials or government workers…
Sadly, at the end of the day, these same favoured recipients seem to have wasted the opportunity because the country is still in deep cacao and despite their degrees and high paying job, their self-expression and demeanour would make you question if they were educated at all. There are plenty of educated fools, but not enough smart people who care.
Sexist much? You’re too ignorant to comprehend the basics on how a society operates. To think that the crime rate is supposed to automatically decrease because a speech was made is bunkers.
The basic unit of any society is the family. That is where humans begin to learn how to socialize. If we’re not taught how to be positive members in society by the people who chose to have us, how are we supposed to be productive? You have parents who have children and would rather waste money on their outfits, on their hair, nails etc. while their kids have nothing to eat. It’s high time we realize how our interactions affect our children. Lucians as a whole need to be more open with their children and give them the attention and affection they need when they’re little because that stuff affects them into adulthood. I guarantee you nobody randomly wakes up one morning and decides they’ll become a gang member, killer, thief etc. It’s a process that takes place when they’re kids.
Parents need to take responsibility for their failures and its impact on our society. We need to quit expecting politicians to fix our kids when we failed them.
“Take back the streets” How many times we’ve heard this phrase before from past commissioners. 66 homicides for the year so far and you sound like you just woke up from a coma or just landed on earth. Sorry but I’ve lost all faith in the system and since there will is no hanging, nothing will change for the better and crime will continue at a high rate.
To get tough on crime madame, do not just put these thugs in jail to post videos and eat tax payers’ money. Scare the living daylights out of them by reinstating the death penalty in the legal books. The countries that are acting as if they will have a heart attack or a seizure when they hear of the death penalty are actually practicing it. Many persons are on the death row in the US. Take a look at the movie Dead Men Walking. You do not need to hang them. Death by lethal injection. A life for a life as stated in Leviticus. These were guidelines to rid societies of evil.
Here we are again every single comment here is making excuses for those thugs so you can see how this society runs. Lucians you crying, you have plenty more crying to do.
There are some good ideas offered by the public. It’s time to start implementing them.
Bring back extreme punishments for extreme crimes. The death penalty is what will hinder people from taking it that far.
And start shaming the people associated with criminals, especially those protecting gang members. Nobody will want to harbour the criminals anymore. Put the parents names and pictures up.
But the thing is, we don’t immediately condemn all misbehaving yute. Here’s how it will go. If junior is just acting up at home, he gets reported by his family and then he gets access to counseling and support. No names and photos get published. Cuz sometimes the children are acting up and choosing the gang life for a reason. It won’t be a death sentence, this is their way out of that sadness.
If junior has been moving with a gang or is in one, he will be arrested but if he shares information, he and his family will be allowed protection, anonymity and support.
Any known bad boys, guilty of 2+ violent crimes or repeated threatening behaviour when found guilty, are immediately executed. No one will want to be a badmun again.
This system saves the country millions of dollars in court fees and prison fees and is now reinvested in programs to teach the public what emotional, psychological, and verbal abuse looks like to stop the unhealthy patterns which allows for dysfunction and these men and women seeking a wayward lifestyle in the first place. And don’t say it’s inhumane. Murdering innocent people is inhumane and even America has a death penalty despite its many resources for rehabilitation.
Next thing is to address the currently incarcerated. They will now have to earn their keep in an ethical and self-respectingself-respecting manner. They have to do hard labour on site and whereever else needed so they remain physically active. They could get training for specific types of tasks. It will keep their minds busy and they get to feel like they’re making a positive difference. They get paid a small sum for their efforts and they get free financial management assistance so their monies grow in that time and they can send something back to their dependants while they are inside. That might be the reason some got into crime in the first place. By giving them a chance to be helpful, a lot of these boys could turn around. If they are elligible to leave confinement, they will have a solid work history, a little money in their pocket and maybe a fitter body and mind. Meanwhile the country will have fewer young men on the block trying to get into crime because it will result in either some very hard work or the death penalty. It will allow people to see there is a consequence to crime. The incarcerated will have more appreciation for law-abiding citizens because they know what it is to make an honest living instead of being handed 3 squares, a cot and smuggled pot for with tax payers money. Garbage along roadsides and wherever else will be removed and facilities on-island will be better managed.
I’ve heard these same word from every other top cop before this one…to no avail!
I was about to come down to Saint Lucia for Christmas with my kids. I said forget about it. I’ll take my chances in the cold. This place ain’t safe, I wanted my kids to get to know Saint Lucia, but I won’t be taking them to this danger zone.
Before the Demolition of Central police and the Fire Service on Jeromie Street the police Presence had already Taken a Down Turn .Special Duty have taken over police Duties and Special Duty now becomes Police Duty .The police Commissioner of Police Should have a Review of all these police officers performing Special Duty .Most of them have three or more Special Duty and have So many officers working for them .If the Commissioner carry out an Investigation She will be Surprise.There’s over 50% of police officers who have had no Cases at the Courts .Why because they have to perform Special Duty so no time for Court.The Commissioner Should Cancell Leave and have all hands on Deck to Clean up St.Lucia
See why your parents told you to study hard and do better in school. They knew full well the kind of life you would leave if you didn’t have a good education. So please don’t blame anyone but yourself for not putting in the necessary effort to make your life better.
It took long for the acting prime minister to say something. Its a shame that no one from the Soufriere Representative Office can visit or even pick up the phone to call the family of the victims.