KINGSTON, Jamaica, Feb 8, CMC – Jamaica has recorded a 31 per cent decline in all major crimes since the start of the year with murders down by 34 per cent over the corresponding period of 2022, Commissioner of Police, Major General Antony Anderson, has said.
He told a virtual news conference that shootings are down by 26 per cent, rapes by 44 per cent, and break-ins, seven per cent, but that gang conflicts accounted for 65 per cent of all murders committed during the period.
So far this year, Jamaica has recorded 86 murders as compared with 137 for the corresponding period last year. There were 71 shootings this year as against 94 for the same period last year.
Jamaica recorded 1498 murders in 2022.
“Interpersonal conflicts accounted for 22 per cent, while three per cent occurred in the furtherance of other criminal acts and 10 per cent are still being determined,” Anderson said.
“We note the significant number of murders from interpersonal conflicts impacting police divisions and we renew our appeal to citizens – if you are aware of a domestic dispute or other interpersonal conflict, report it to the police so we can intervene”.
The Police Commissioner said that the process of boosting the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) is ongoing and that the target of adding more than 1,200 additional members to the organisation by the end of the financial year is moving apace and invited young persons who want to make a positive impact on the society to apply to join the force.
“We continue to train additional motorcycle drivers as we expand our quick-response team’s capability,” he said, noting that the bikes allow for prompt response in and around town centres.
