Bandits as Police?

The recent robbery of two citizens while on their way to the airport should open the eyes of the authorities if previous incidents had not already done so. The burning question should be the one which asks how bandits could believe they would get away impersonating real cops. The answer most likely should be that the robbers by their very actions were emulating the behavior of Guyana’s finest. In the midst of all speculation, maybe the investigators should explore the possibility that the bandits were in fact policemen posing as bandits dressed as policemen.
But back to the first question; some sections of society would be among the most vocal in pointing to police abuse of their authority. Outside of stated rules of engagement, police ranks, who, for the most part, are expected to operate in a discretionary mode outside of the direct supervision of a senior rank, often succumb to the temptation of position power. Just observe their actions when approaching householders to conduct searches many times without a search warrant. In the face of a request to produce that official document, ranks override all objections using their long guns as the authority to commit an illegal search. The problem is that they are allowed to get away with these atrocities because Guyanese are fearful of seeking legal remedy, and the fact that many lawyers in this country are timid and too lazy to challenge these illegal acts. As a matter of fact, it is quite puzzling how a lawyer will only appear in court just to make a plea of mitigation for a defendant. In other words, some attorneys are simply content to beg rather than to mount a spirited research-based defence for their client.
There seems to be no established protocols for many operational situations that the local police find themselves in. The standard response when things go awry is that Standard Operational Procedures were not followed. But if the ranks were to be asked their response would differ markedly from that offered by the police administration. In Vancouver, Canada, casino patrons were followed and robbed by bandits impersonating police in an official-looking SUV, complete with flashing blue lights. Of course, one prevention response measure was to provide winners with cheques instead of cash.
Therefore it is the responsibility of the police to make the public aware of what they must expect in a police-public contact situation; how the police are expected to behave, and how the public should behave in these situations. The fact remains that the majority of people are law-abiding and therefore it would be better for the police to risk informing the few criminally inclined than to be criminally negligent in not doing all in their power to ensure that the majority are provided with the means to avoid being a victim of crime.
Bandits are predators and will seize upon every opportunity to conduct their nefarious business, even if it means behaving in the unprofessional manner that the public have come to expect of our law enforcement officers. In 2011, two Arima, Trinidad residents were shot and killed by two killers impersonating police officers who did all the usual things that the police do, including shouting ‘police’ and demanding that the occupants open the door.  And in Detroit, USA, surprisingly two robbers who were thought to be bandits impersonating police officers turned out to be Police Sergeants moonlighting as bandits.
It is foolish to believe that the happenings in the outside world escape notice, and therefore it is quite reasonable to assume that police malpractices in those places are not unknown locally. What is problematic at this time, however, is the operational inefficiency of the 911 line and the general dissatisfaction about the lack of response to calls for assistance. So any advice that people should call the nearest station or 911 to confirm that a police patrol is operating in a particular area will certainly be useless. Of course, it could be argued that such information should not be given out for fear of jeopardising operational integrity of the crime prevention patrols. Be that as it may, some compromise should be sought with the safety and security of the public being paramount.