Dirty cops collecting cash to protect criminals

[Mosiah]

Guns for hire - Dirty cops collecting cash to protect criminals
Published: Friday | December 4, 2009


Arthur Hall, Senior Staff Reporter

Ellington

The high command of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) is getting more worried about the number of policemen and women hiring out their services to criminals.

Acting Commissioner of Police Owen Ellington revealed the JCF's concerns yesterday, less than 24 hours after two members of the force were taken into custody for their suspected role in a daylight gangland shoot-out in Hayes, Clarendon, involving members of the feared Clansman and Boston criminal posses.

In that incident, an occupant of one of the vehicles died and two handguns were seized.

"I am deeply concerned about what appears to be an escalation in the activities or participation of members of the JCF in criminal gangs as well as consorting with known criminals," Ellington said during a media briefing at the Office of the Police Commissioner in St Andrew.

"I am issuing a warning to all policemen and policewomen to stop associating themselves with criminals or criminal gangs," Ellington declared.

"I want to state categorically that as long as I am in charge, I will use every lawful means at my disposal to find those individuals and to get rid of them from the JCF on the grounds that they have lost my confidence and they have lost the moral authority to continue serving the public," he added.

Ellington further warned policemen and women that if they were suspected of having ties to criminal gangs or consorting with criminal elements, they will be punished.

"We in the Police High Command will make no distinction between police personnel involved in criminal activities and civilians involved in criminal activities," the acting commissioner stated.

He said the police would be relentless in going after criminal gangs blamed for most major crimes across the island.

Colleagues at risk

"When policemen carry on their wrongdoing, they put the lives of their colleagues at risk and the lives of their families and friends also at risk," warned Ellington.

Ten members of the police force have been killed this year.

That number includes 36-year-old Constable Steve Brown who was shot in Clarendon on Monday as he drove a man who had gone to court to answer charges, including illegal possession of a firearm. Brown was not on duty at the time of the incident, but has not been accused of any criminal act.

Ellington is urging members of the public to report instances when policemen or women are seen in the company of known gangsters.

He pointed to the toll-free line 1-800-CORRUPT (1-800-267-7878) as one of the safe ways for persons to pull the rug from under dirty cops.

Ellington was supported by head of the Police Anti-Corruption Branch, Assistant Police Commissioner Justin Felice, who is leading the charge to rid the force of corrupt cops.

"There is a lot of information floating around about members of the force involved in gangs and we need to get the good policemen to tell us what they know because the good police know what is going on," Felice said.

arthur.hall@gleanerjm.com

[Mosiah]

Raymond Wilson needs to resign right now. Friggin EEDIAT!

[Karl]

Guns for hire - Dirty cops collecting cash to protect criminals
Published: Friday | December 4, 2009


Arthur Hall, Senior Staff Reporter


Ellington further warned policemen and women that if they were suspected of having ties to criminal gangs or consorting with criminal elements, they will be punished.


arthur.hall@gleanerjm.com

I guess the below is what he meant -

Ellington further warned policemen and women that if they were suspected of having ties to criminal gangs or consorting with criminal elements, they will be investigated.

[Mosiah]

The acting commish said a lot of things that were either plain silly or obvious.

"I want to state categorically that as long as I am in charge, I will use every lawful means at my disposal to find those individuals and to get rid of them from the JCF on the grounds that they have lost my confidence and they have lost the moral authority to continue serving the public," he added.

DUH statement of the week!

Ellington is urging members of the public to report instances when policemen or women are seen in the company of known gangsters. He pointed to the toll-free line 1-800-CORRUPT (1-800-267-7878) as one of the safe ways for persons to pull the rug from under dirty cops.

What does the commish want us to do? So, that 800 line is answered abroad. Is the investigation going to take place abroad as well? At some point, local policemen must get involved and at this rate, theonly person I'll ever report anything to is the Commissioner himself. I DO NOT TRUST 90% OF OUR POLICEMEN!!!

"There is a lot of information floating around about members of the force involved in gangs and we need to get the good policemen to tell us what they know because the good police know what is going on," Felice said.

The good policemen will not come forward because they are overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of bad cops. Felice needs to run a lie detector test on every single cop, for starters.

The commish should, on behalf of the force, apologise to Jamaicans for Justice and immediately implement every single recommendation made by that group and others.

One week alone and you two incidents where policemen are wrapped up with shady people! Imagine the number of times it happens, just that nothing comes out of it, at least in the open.

Time for disbanding a couple things. Start with the JCF and follow that closely with Windies cricket!

[Lazie]

"Time for disbanding a couple things. Start with the JCF..."

Yeap! There is no other option. I've also heard MArk Shields making the same suggestion at the PNP's forum on crime.

[Mosiah]

sounds dramatic and headline-seeking, but it's the reality! send fi scotland yard if necessary!

[Willi]

Fight with systems, not people

Published: Thursday | December 3, 2009


Andrew Issacs, Contributor

Having lived on Jamaica for all my life, I have watched the gradual decline in our abilities to implement programmes, solve simple problems and remain focused on specific issues. In recent years, two of the issues that have taken centre stage are corruption in the police force and the impact of garrisons. To these problems, loud and often misguided calls have been made to rid the force of corrupt police personnel and to dismantle the garrisons.

Ridding the force of corrupt cops, I am assuming, means to identify and expel those who are corrupt. However, is this practical or is it another baseless hope that we have allowed ourselves to hang on to? I submit that no individual or group within or outside the force, will be able to go through the JCF and identify the corrupt officers. Acts of corruption will be reduced in the force or any other organisation, when the possibility of detection is extremely high. This, however, is only the first step, as having detected the act, sanctions must then be applied swiftly and without consideration for the status of the offender.

Reward cops
Simultaneously, proper policing must be rewarded. I would shudder at the possibility of having the opportunity to identify those officers who have been promoted or otherwise rewarded, who have had tainted or colourful histories. Corruption needs support and would otherwise die without the collusion of individuals and the systems of policing being employed.
While I applaud the efforts by the police to set up sting operations, how many more will we need to mount? How many more members of the public will need to come forward and say that officer Joe wants money from me?

Why not use technology in the form of dash cams etc. to record the activities of police? Apply sanctions whenever operations are conducted without cameras running. Why not ensure that there is always communication between central control and the officers before any engagement with criminal elements?

I am not a policeman and know very little about policing; however, my position is that we fight corruption with systems not people. People will act in ways that belie proper behaviour outside of proper boundaries or rules. We will continue to graduate good officers who ultimately become tainted because our system of policing allows it to happen.

A mindset
Similarly, as we call on politicians to dismantle garrison communities, we need to first establish what garrisons really are in the Jamaican context. Are they places or do they represent a mindset. In today's Jamaica, I strongly believe they represent the latter. As such, I ask the question, how do you dismantle a mind? I hear the fallacious argument about the unfulfilled promise to dismantle garrisons. However, if the initial idea was invalid, why do we wish to have it perpetuated? Why do people choose to live in this way? Is it for economic, security or social reasons? If any of these three is true, then the change will only come when as a people we can find ways to help those in garrisons to find the alternative means of meeting these needs. Otherwise, let us forget about the talk of dismantling.

Years ago, I was responsible for a hostel of young men. I was asked by my superiors why these fellows were so destructive and boisterous, and also instructed that I had to do something about it. In response, I asked that my superiors consider what alternative behaviour they expected when these men were required to be crossing rivulets of sewage on their way to the kitchen, or seeing the facility wiped and polished only when rented to outsiders.

When this state changed, so too did the behaviour, as well as the forceful implementation of rules. If this story sounds familiar, then maybe it can be the starting point of a mind change for those in the so-called garrisons.

Feedback may be sent to andrewisaacs@hotmail.com orletters@gleanerjm.com

[Karl]

Mo knows what he suggest is not an option...and you are right on, Sir Willi!
It is the systems and the individual attitude that must under go change!

[Mosiah]

Karl, still think the JFJ is irrelevant?

[Lionpaw]

wha mek unnuh feel say dem a get pay? nuff a dem a protect badman who a dem bredrin wha dem grow up wid fi free. mi see a example a dat wid mi two yeye!

[Assasin]

In some cases nuh the badman a protect the police?
The link go deep.

[Mosiah]

An acquaintance of mine told me last week that his father was a cop and his two brothers were gunmen. I asked him if his father knew his sons were gunmen. He said, den who yuh tink gi dem di gun?!?

[Lionpaw]

fi stop the confusion, mek we jus gi everybody wid a gun one title, "badman" or "police", unnuh decide.

[Mosiah]

badman mi seh!