Crime impact increasing
(CNS): Almost half of local businesses believe violent crime has increased with 39 percent reporting being the victim of at least one crime over the last year and 14% saying they had witnessed a violent crime in their business area. According to a new survey by the Chamber of Commerce, the business community is both falling victim to and concerned about more crime in the Cayman Islands and believes it could be reduced with a higher police presence. Of those who responded to the crime questionnaire, 68% also said they wanted to see stiffer penalties for offenders to comabt the growing threat. However, the latest statistics from the police that have not yet been officially released suggest crime is falling with a 7% decrease in 2011 on the previous twelve months.
Speaking on Radio Cayman on Thursday, Police Commissioner David Baines said there were 54 less serious crimes last year than those committed in 2010. He also revealed that there were 65 less burglaries during the last 12 months. Overall, he said, there were 190 less offences in 2011 but he conceded that armed robbery was undermining community safety and his officers were focusing on this type of crime.
In the Chamber report, designed primarily to examine the impact of economic crime such as fraud and money laundering, the business community also reported their experiences of property crime.
It revealed that businesses were particularly concerned about theft and breaking and entering, which was cited by 57% but almost 40% said they were concerned about armed robbery.
Well over half of the respondents said they had spent money on extra crime prevention methods over the last two years, including employing guards and installing CCTV and security systems, adding to the cost of doing business.
30% said they had lost business directly as a result of crime and 41% said they wanted to see more investment by government in crime prevention and law enforcement, while more than one third said they had never seen a police officer on duty in their business area. Only 6% of respondents though the authorities were doing enough to tackle crime and some 30% reported not feeling very safe when walking around their business area after dark.
While more than half of those that took part said they would join a neighbourhood watch scheme, only ten percent were willing to organise such a programme.
Speaking about the importance of the community assisting police in the crime fight, Commissioner Baines said, “What people see and what they do about it is critical to us …If they see something wrong and do nothing about it but sit there and moan about going to hell in a hand cart, they need to look at themselves of the mirror.”
Baines said he believed most people wanted to do the right thing and not turn a blind eye but it was upto the RCIPS to make it easy for them.
“We have got to be an organisation that is open enough that allows them to do the right thing” and not “feel compromised” when they ring in with information, he said. He wanted to know when people were not getting a welcoming and professional service from the police when reporting crime.
Promoting the search for community heroes, he said everyone had a stake in ensuring we were living and working safely in the wider community. He said the initiative was about demonstrating what single people can do to fight crime.
Related article:
Fraud less likely reported to police, survey finds
Read: Economic Crime Survey Report 2011 (scroll down to download full report)
Category: Crime
As I have been saying for the last 10 years. How about GPS at central to monitor were every Police vehicle is traveling 24 hrs a day. Maybe some front and rear dash cameras to help with evidence.
As i understand it, a large chunk of the mega$$$ voted by government went to paying for officers' overtime (and back overtime).. so are these people just racking up meaningless hours? There is no real police presence, and responce is still lacking!
Also,why is 2010-11 being used as the crime benchmark?? Just as the statistics offices do, the benchmark should be perhaps a decade ago, or set a year – eg 2000, and measure against that.
Most any year will be lower thn the crap that happened in 2010-11.
Actually Chinese Labourers would be 100X more respectful and upstanding than most of the people born and raised here. Take from someone who actually travels.
We have over 366 police officers in Cayman now . Why can't we put a squad car in each district with 2 cops ready to go in a moments notice? We have 5 districts on grand cayman. We just need 10 cops and one helicopter. In fact lets make it a requirement that the officers who are in charge for arresting and prosecuting these crimes have a point system. You get 2 points for every criminal you put in jail you lose 2 points for every criminal that gets away. After so many points gained you get a promotion. Of course if you losing points you will have to leave and find some other job. Simple so simple you would be surprised to see how much crime would be solved.
Cayman is a country where every citizen is an expert at everything but nothing ever gets done right, on time, on budget, or within the law. Simple so simple you would be surprised to see how much could get done if you would stop trying to do it yourself.
What I'm hoping and praying for Cayman is that this lack of a national strategy to combat and reduce crime is not a deliberate political strategy by either or both political parties leadership to undermine each other for political gain.
This is common in the political culture in some other Caribbean islands and to be truthful, upon reading Cayman's news nowadays, the only thing that seperates Cayman from these other islands is the title, 'British Overseas Territory'.
What is more worrying than gunmen invading, robbing and terrorising Cayman, unhindered and for the most part unaprehended and unchallenged, is…
The total silence from both the British and Caymanian authorites…
And, the general public.
People are willing to march, petition and make trips to London on behalf of economic policies and projects but….
Not on behalf of their own society being torn apart by armed gunmen….
This is indeed, very, very worrying.
Monkey see monkey do…so what is going on with investigation of the premier?
So what happens when an honest indvidual gets booted from his job and has to provide an income for his family?!?! People will do what they have to in order to to keep their head above water. Stop replacing good hard working employees with filipinos and the crime will decrease.
Congratulations for the 'ignorant post of the day' award. Do you really think that all the crime is from honest hardworking Caymanians whose jobs have been given to filipinos? Thankfully, you do not speak for the rest of this island or else we would be in a lot of trouble. Grow up
Dont think I mentioned Caymanians anywhere in that statement. Read again.
Are you one of those? Did you loose your job and decided to start robbing? Did you try to interview for another job? What happened? Do you have a negative Police Record and noone wants to give you a job now? A real head of a family that needs to provide for his or her loved ones does not go out robbing. Especially on an island that does not know what real poverty means. If you can not find a job here, (any job at this point of desperation will do you) I am sorry but you not only lack of skills but you lack of manners, dedication and humbleness. If you have two working legs and two working arms and hands, if you can pick up a broom and sweep, or flip a burger, if you can say "good morning may I help you" and "thanks" then you would be able to find a job. In a country where we the local population believe we are entitled to the best without doing much just because we "are from here" is not difficult to be good at a given job. The only think you are asked is to show up and work. That is it. Many Philipinos do just that: they work, show up on time and are polite. That is because the culture where they come from things are a lot more difficult. They know what poverty and working long hours for a meager pay means.
If you rob your fellow men, then you are a traitor to this country and justifying it by the conditions we live on these days is just as bad and sets a horrible example for others and denotes lack of values and education to live in a society. Traitors all of them. Should be dealt with maximum penalty!
Did not say I was! I have a job and a very good one at that. And yes any job at this point will do. But tell me this how is flipping burgers or janitorial work going to help someone with a dept ratio of 40% of his salary??
what's your point? you said right off the person was Honest.
my point was, they replace us to pay them lower wages.
Most would work harder to find and keep a job. Only some, and only a certain kind of person turns to crime. You sound like one of those. Very Caymankind of you to blame filipinos instead of yourself. We get it.
You think its bad now…Just wait till all the Chinese Labourers get here!
So many people know the identity of those committing the crimes but are afraid to give the police the evidence they need. We need to 1) offer greater protection to those testifying 2) make it obligatory by law for those with evidence to testify 3) all witness tampering cases should be decided on by judge alone.
Making it obligatory by law for those with evidence to testify??? Are you out of your mind? THE RCIPS now or never will be able to protect you, unless they give you new identity and you move to another country…and that isn't going to happen, so get your head out of the sand and wake up to reality….and to be decided by a judge alone…pick me up from the floor from laughing so hard…
Just waiting to hear of a mugging at the Ritz-Carlton….then we will see Mac crying!!
We need a leader that cares. Somone that will stop chasing money and put people first. But we are not billionaires or millionaires so we don't count.
Baines, you have alot of nerve to say that to the people. When we do report a crime, the criminal finds out and threatens us, so don't give that crap about us moaning and groaning….your department can't do their job and neither can you. I reported criminal activity over and over again and you know what, we were threatened and the police didn't do s..t….so don't come and preech that crap…..I will never report any criminal activity if i see it and i suggest that people do the samething….sad as it may seem, but you may be saving your life, cause the police are useless and Baines has alot of nerve…
I want to report a crime against the English language.
You need to get your priorities right.
This govt has surely not taken a tough stance on crime.
They have not even publicly challenged the police commissioners constant reports offalling crime or his insane claims of a handful of 15 to 20 people with guns sharing them.
What rubbish!
The reality is you can bring the new port, new roads, 4cayman alliance and the economic zone but if the govt continues to ignore the big white elephant in the room called crime their efforts will be all for naught.
In this case doing nothing is still doing something….and the people continue to suffer while others including some in government increase the size of their security detail.
For the government to claim that crime "is not their fault and there is nothing they can do about it" is unacceptable.
Crime will be an election issue and if this govt doesnt do something about it, we will vote in a govt who will.
There is ALOT that can be said about what should and should not be done! But all i will say is that once the system is CORRUPT we can never solve anything!
Ah yes, Capt Soundbite strikes again. !!
"He wanted to know when people were not getting a welcoming and professional service from the police when reporting crime."
Seriously? If everyone did that, the police wouldn't have time for anything else…
There will come a time Cayman, when you have to admit that your 'jobs for the boys' philosophy isn't working. You want less crime? Employ less criminals in the POlice. You should ONLY have people in there who understand that wearing a cop uniform doesn't make one a cop, it makes you a iability unless you are intentioned to be above all that effects Cayman now. The problem is that almost as soon as a good honest cop gets in there Haines, Kernohan, Siddal, Williams etc) then they are undermined from teh start.
Let's face it, Baines' holiday is almost up. My advice to you Cayman, get things in motion to replace him with someone who'll do the job properly, and not pander to the old school. Otherwise you'll just be wasting more hours on here saying how terrible things are. Read those stats in the article Cayman. If Libya, Israel, Egypt et al can do it, I'm damn sure you can. TRADITION DOESN'T WORK. It's for hero's day, not every day.
Agreed. It starts at the TOP
Foot patrol is the bread and butter of policing in a community. Unfortunately, this part of the police strategy has been taken out of the daily agenda, and therefore we see more petty crime and less information being presented to the police. People don't want to talk to a random police officer showing up at their door one day. They are more likely to talk to the police officer they see patrolling their neighbourhood day in and day out – it's not rocket science.
With regards to armed robbery – well, what we obviously need is BETTER policing, not necessarily more police officers. I know a few police officers. Some are very committed to their job and their patrol. Some are more useless than dirt. Same issue with the CS – a stand needs to be made to get rid of the no-good, lazy employees – Caymanian and expat alike. However, no one wants to do the dirty work and be made the black sheep of the government. Fair enough. If you don't have what it takes to do what the country needs and rather you want to do what you want, please resign. We need those who care enough to make the difficult, efficient decisions. Not those selfish enough to eschew them or those stupid enough not to realize the impact that these 'floaters' are having on government expenditure, reputation and efficiency. This applies to all CS in the managerial and pseudo-managerial position, from the top to the bottom, from Mr. Premier all the way down to the assistant managers.
An irate Caymanian
An excellent point re: foot patrol. The dependence on cars insulates the police from the public on so many levels. Another suggestion? When an individual does actually show some initiative and get out of his/her car and walk around with his dog (yes 'his), don't criticise him/her for being away from his/her patrol car, thus 'reducing response times'.
What a Joke.
Don't forget the helicopter folks !!
Can anyone give an example of a crime, any crime where that helicopter has been instrumental incatching a perpetrator? The damn thing seems to fly every day without fail, though funnily enough I didn't hear it today (Saturday) so maybe the pilots get weekends off….It's in the air more often than Jerome is these days ! But what has it actually done other than cost a ton of money? It seems the RCIPS have to fly it to be seen to justify it's existance.
I'd much rather see the money spent on having officers patroling the community and having a presence than bee seen joyriding about in the sky.
Maybe it's doing double duty as the 'eye in the sky' for DMS Real Time Traffic……
Its easy to get a 7% reduction is crime when you manipulate statistics.
"David Baines said there were 54 less serious crimes last year than those committed in 2010"
Assault charges become domestic disputes, attempted burglaries become tresspassing etc. Serious crimes then become misdemeanors and surprise…serious crime is down.
Hmm I own a business and this survey wasn't circulated to me?
Maybe one of your employees stole it.
This will never be taken seriusly until people start thinking crime is a greater risk to Cayman then things like road or Dump relocations, Rich foriegn investors or people named Dart.
No, it's all one thing: an incompetent gowerment that doesn't give a shit about anything other than taking money from rich expatriot businessmen. It's called CRONY CAPATALISM – look it up.
Just shows the failures of our present Government!
Unemployment still the same – Crime still increasing. You can count on that and it is very easy for a solution!
Crime by a generation of youths is not a government failing. It is a cultural failing. Sad.
Very true, but it's not our native culture, but what has been imported and made popular – with no controls by families, media and government.
AND, it's not all LOCAL youths (and adults) doing the crimes..
But…we can't blame individual irresponsibility and criminality on imported values!
That has to be taught in our homes, then maintained individually!
WE used to have an RCIP community officer in our area, walking the rounds. Since she left, a murder in our area & break-ins are common place. There is just no visible police presence anymore, is it any wonder the criminals have not noticed this too?
Is this less crime or 'less reported crime'?
Seems to me the latter as more and more people just don't bother to call RCIPS.
I suspect the bottom line is that the CoP should get out of his office and talk to people if he wants a true picture of crime levels because those figures are BS.
Commissioner Baines said, “What people see and what they do about it is critical to us.”.
Well sir I happen to be an individual who was a victim of a robbery this year. After calling the police station and being assured by a receptionist an officer would be out to assist, I found myself walking in the rain to the same police station 65 minutes after my call was placed. Not only was I told to come back tomorrow, I was told I was unable to file a report that evening because no one was there to take my report. Upon returning the next day I was told an officer would arrive at my residence between the hours of 9:30-10:30 PM on a weeknight. Needless to say no officer showed, I once again took it upon myself to travel to the police station to attempt to file a report. I waited 45 minutes for an officer to finish their pizza that was delivered while I was waiting to provide my report. My report consisted of 7 sentences which took the officer 2 hours to type!!! I found it interesting this officer was using a report template on his computer that had already been completed regarding another crime that had previously taken place on island (names, dates, alledged crimes) included. I was told to check back in a week to inquire on the status of said report. Upon my return I was told the RCIP have no record of a report being filed.
Forgive me for saying this
What your officers see and what they do about it is critical to us
Wow – so MANY people feel this way!
Cayman's problem is that the society views crime as mainly an economic problem, not a social problem rooted in economics.
Case in point; the opening paragraph of this news article refers to the impact on businesses;while this is very important, where is the reference to impact on families and lives, for both the criminals and their victims. (See CNS note at the bottom)
Back in the day, lock-them-up-and-throw-away-the-key was the only mantra from Cayman's business community, while the social conditions of deprivation and lack of opportunity for some was being totally ignored.
Now, they can't even catch them, to lock them up….and Commissioner of Police David Baines has absolutely no clue…and many of the experienced Caymanian police officers who did have a clue and a handle on the community are no longer with the RCIPS, and ,in their places, inexperienced and unconnected foreign nationals.
Cayman's social and economic divisions make it easy for criminals to operate because if a person is not of a particular economic or national group, no one else cares, who is not form the same background…there is no common bond of being of the same community so therefore responsible for each other's welfare, regardless of economic status, race or nationality.
To fight this crime problem successfully will call for a unity of purpose and bonding in Cayman's society and with the current political climate of division, the criminals preying on Cayman's society will be winning this battle for quite some time to come.
They are only taking advantage of existing conditions.
CNS: This article and the one linked at the end of it are based on the recent Chamber of Commerce Economic Crime Survey, which was only circulated to businesses and was specifically designed to assess the impact of economic crime on local companies.
Sure, get tough on crime, but also get tough on the CAUSES of crime.
Sad, left Jamaica for the same reason. Now it is happening here as well.
Never thought that Cayman would come to this. Never thought that I would have to worry about my fam's safety here. NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD HAVE TO MOVE!
Seriously? Where in the world doesn't have some form of crime?
Little Cayman!!!!
shhhhhh!
Sadly, a lot of (wealthy) Jamaicans who fled here to escape crime also brought with them the culture of graft and corruption (or at least the acceptance of, if not participation in) which is one of the root causes of crime in both Jamaica and Cayman.
'….culture of graft…' What's that? Thought 'graft' was hard work…?
So hundreds of years of Caymanian virtue, values, Christianity, integrity and honesty couldn't overcome the negative traits you say those Jamaican's brought with them? That's like saying the altar boy molested the priest. Just gotta blame someone else for your short-comings, don't you? Going forward, please stop associating us decent, hardworking, and loving Caymanians with such weakness.
Someone needs to come up with a get rich quick scheme to get rid of the criminals. That is the only way that this government would get involved.
The suggestion that crime is falling is nonsense and any contrived statistics which the incapable dredge up to delude the public should be met with ridicule. Only the politicians can pass laws which will make our streets safe but as long as they have their personal security and high walls paid for by the public they don't care what happens to the rest of us.
Clearly the public want our elected politicians to get serious about the criminals who are destroying our country. The politicians clearly don't want to get tough on crime and criminals. Is that out of professionl courtesy?
What say you, Mr. Premier?
wait, are you even here?
does it even make a difference?