NASSAU, BAHAMAS — As law enforcement authorities continue efforts to suppress violent crimes amid an ongoing gang war, Acting Commissioner of Police Clayton Fernander said yesterday that police have gotten a good grip on the situation through targeting operations and persistent saturation patrols of crime hotspots.
He outlined some of those efforts and the yield to date, as well as police intelligence linking several recent murders and shootings.
Asked whether the police force has gotten a grip on the crime situation, Fernander said: “We are getting some good results. Again, I believe we have our hands on the pulse and we will make a difference as we continue to pursue these individuals out there. And we want to thank the members of the public, who continue to touch [base] with us. We have them and we will be there for you…”
In the last week, there were three police-involved shootings, two of which were fatal.
Around 1am on Wednesday, officers responded to a disturbance and found a young man walking with a firearm, who fired shots at the police vehicle.
Officers exchanged gunfire and the man was shot and killed.
On Sunday, officers on a special operation observed a man attempting to break into a home and approached him, resulting in a struggle.
The man reportedly was armed with a crowbar and attempted to disarm an officer.
He was shot and died on the scene.
Fernander said police had observed a trend of housebreakings in eastern New Providence for a couple of months and put in place an operation to find the individuals.
According to Fernander, 13 firearms and an assortment of ammunition were seized in the last week.
He said 14 people were arrested in connection with those unlicensed firearms.
On Saturday around 2am, officers responding to a prowler in the eastern area found four armed men, who fled when police approached them.
A chase ensued, with the occupants of the vehicle opening fire on police from the back windshield during the chase before crashing.
The men managed to get away, according to Fernander, who said the area was saturated with officers in pursuit of the men.
He said 10 minutes later officers observed a woman driving a vehicle with a male passenger, both of whom were acting suspiciously.
Officers searched the vehicle and found the suspects in the back trunk armed with a rifle and a modified pistol that had an extension drum, which took its rounds from 15 to 50.
“This was found along with the high-powered rifle in the vehicle,” Fernander said.
“They were arrested. You have a total of five young men and a female was arrested for that.
“We believe we foiled a murder and I believe they were prowling. They had tie clips. We suspect based on our intel they were trying to break into a home and looking for an individual for whatever reason.”
Fernander said those five suspects were also being questioned in relation to four other recent murders and four attempted murders in New Providence.
He said he believes there is sufficient evidence to charge the group in connection with those matters.
The acting commissioner thanked God no officer was harmed.
Two armed robberies also took place in separate incidents on Sunday around 7am.
Officers on patrol spotted the vehicle and pursued the occupants, leading to a chase that ended in the Kennedy Subdivision.
Three men, two of whom were armed exited the vehicle and began shooting at the police.
One of the men was shot. A pistol was recovered.
A second suspect was arrested in the area, but the third managed to escape.
The property reportedly stolen was found in the vehicle and in the possession of the man who was shot.
Authorities reported earlier this year that there was an uptick in armed robberies.
Fernander underscored the success of the police force in making significant arrests as a result of their continued operations.
During a saturated patrol in the Nassau Village area, officers found a high-powered rifle on the seat of a man’s vehicle.
“It appears again that we may have stopped another murder or a shooting because he appeared to be in a ready position and looking for somebody at that particular time,” Fernander said.
