Former Crime Chief, Leslie James

[www.inewsguyana.com] –Hours after the home of Assistant Police Commissioner and Former Crime Chief Leslie James was invaded by bandits, former President, Donald Ramotar says that it is time the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) assist the police in tackling the issue of crime on Guyana’s shores.

Reports indicate that James and his family were robbed on Sunday morning, when armed bandits broke into their Sophia home. The three men, who perpetrated the robbery, carted off with approximately half a million dollars in valuables.

Ramotar, reacting to the incident said the robbery “tells the grim story of how crime is spiraling out of control in our country,” adding “this is a blatant and brazen attack on one of our most senior police officer. It is a slap in the face of the Guyana Police Force and the government as a whole.”

The former Commander in Chief said that he has noted with much disdain the “casual” manner in which the APNU+AFC administration is handing the issue of crime.

“During the PPP/C period in Office, the Army was called out to do joint patrols with the police in times of heightened criminal activities that worked well. During the holiday season, the PPP/C administration had a programme where the army and police had joint patrols between November 15 to January 15 to minimize the crimes in the country,” said Ramotar.

Former President, Donald Ramotar.

The ex-President stated that it is a common trend for the army and police to combine personnel and resources to combat crime; however that notion seems foreign to the current administration.

“I am extremely disappointed that the mentality in the APNU +AFC regime is to keep the army barracks. The trend all over the world is for the army to come out and work with the police in combating crime. As the nature of crime evolves, the role of the disciplined forces must also evolve. The world over the army is doing more to fight crime.”

Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum had stated that despite what is being peddled by some sections of the media, crime is not spiraling out of control.

The Crime Chief provided empirical data that indicated crime is actually low when compared to other post election period over the last decade.