GOD IS GOOD …..
AG: Criminals Will Not Wreak Havoc On Barbados
Attorney General Dale Marshall, talks to the press regarding the shooting incident at St. Alban’s, St. James on Thursday, January 16.
Thursday, January 16. Government Headquarters Bay Street Bridgetown, Barbados.
Attorney General Dale Marshall has cried shame on this morning’s fatal shooting of a man outside a primary school in view of his son and other bystanders.
And, as he reaffirmed Government’s commitment to returning Barbados to a state of peace and safety, the Minister also served notice on “bandits and other people of like mind” that they will not be allowed to destroy the Barbadian society.
“Today’s homicide perhaps more than any other demonstrates the absolute callousness of the criminal element in Barbados. To carry out any execution is wrong, but to do so in the precincts of a primary school, a place that is to be a place of safety for our young and fragile minds, is an act of sheer evil.
“Little children would have been walking to school when this shooting took place. Some might even have been in plain view and they must now bear the scars for the rest of their lives,” he stated.
Speaking during a press conference at Government Headquarters, Mr. Marshall said this morning’s event and other events from the start of the year would occupy the attention of the National Security Council during a previously scheduled meeting this evening after Cabinet.
However, he warned criminals that they would not be allowed to “wreak havoc” on Barbados, and that no lawful action would be considered to be out of reach of the Royal Barbados Police Force (RBPF).
In fact, he noted that the RBPF’s request for additional resources was being looked on “favourably” in the current estimates. “We will be expecting the members of the Force to do all that is necessary. They have tools in their arsenal that they are able to use, and nothing that is lawful is beyond them,” he said.
At the same time, Mr. Marshall called for residents to “band together” to stamp out the criminal influence in society.
“I again urge Barbadians to desist from this notion that if they have information that they should not come forward. Even if it is your brother or your sister, anybody engaged in this kind of criminal activity has to be brought to justice, and it can only happen with right-thinking Barbadians coming forward and supporting the efforts of the Royal Barbados Police Force.
“We are in this together and when one side falls the entire country will fall,” he pointed out.
Despite what has occurred, the Attorney General also urged the public not to panic, and gave the assurance that ongoing searches by police would be intensified over the coming weeks.
Noting that despite the gun amnesty, which yielded just over 40 guns, Mr. Marshall said there were still a large number of guns on the streets.
However, he expressed confidence that there was enough manpower within the RBPF to get the job done.
julia.rawlins-bentham@barbados.gov.bb
