The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

After today’s events (Oct. 10) it would appear that the residents of Blair, including Little Blair, Ryswick and Harmony Hill, are experiencing a mini crime wave. In the past year there have been at least 10 burglaries or housebreakings of which I am aware, two of the most recent having taken place today; one in Little Blair and the other in Harmony Hill. Some of these events have gone unreported to the best of my knowledge. Can anything be done to stop this crime wave?

We have local crime-watch groups which have been active for some time and have public meetings which liaise with the police so that all can be made aware of what is happening and take precautions. However, the break-ins continue, most of them in broad daylight. At the end of August I had some gardeners working on my property who saw two men come to my back gate but, seeing the men working on the garden, they crossed the street and broke into my neighbour’s house tying up a painter who happened to be working there (fortunately the neighbour was out at the time). The gardener called the police when he saw them enter the next door property and again when he saw them leave with bundles under their arms. The police arrived two hours later.

Today, however, two patrol cars arrived almost immediately when my neighbour down the street noticed that she had been broken into in spite of having two large dogs both of whom, it would seem, were fast asleep! Walking along our road I can point out pretty much every other house which has been broken into or had an armed hold-up or their car or other items stolen, including in one case a pump and pressure tank. This is not a political matter. It is my strong opinion that urgent steps need to be taken by all the relevant powers that be to clamp down on this criminal activity right away before someone gets seriously hurt.

STEPHEN KNOWLES

Nassau,

October 10, 2012.