By LEANDRA ROLLE
Tribune Staff Reporter
lrolle@tribunemedia.net
NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe is calling for Bahamians who have information about the country’s latest killings to cooperate with police and report those responsible behind the incidents.
Mr Munroe spoke after five men were killed over the weekend in separate homicides, three of which took place on Thompson Lane only one day apart.
The homicides have pushed the country’s murder count to 28 so far for the year.
Police have labelled the killings as gang-related and the result of a drug turf war.
Yesterday, Mr Munroe said the issue of gang retaliation killings is not a new phenomenon in the country.
He said what’s important for Bahamians to be aware of is the dangers in harbouring these criminals and not notifying police of their whereabouts.
“Over the course of years, there have been tit-for-tat, gang retaliation, killings that sometimes spread over time and sometimes in condensed time periods. The most important thing that (police) have said is it is not safe to have these people among you and around you,” he told reporters yesterday.
“The fact that we have an upsurge now brings it and draws it to attention and for instance when I was briefed and told that Thompson Lane the first shooting may have been mistaken and then they came back for who they were really looking for. Well, what that should say to everyone in every community in The Bahamas is that it is not safe to have these persons among you and so it is in your interest to turn them into the police.”
Police have said two of the victims killed on Thompson Lane on the weekend were not the intended targets.
He added: “So if you are in Kemp Road, if you are in Pinewood, if you are in Nassau Village or Garden Hills and you know you have people around you who are involved in that activity, you need to give them up to police because you never know when the people come for them, whether you may not be killed by mistake if that is what is happening. So if this intense period does anything, let it educate the public of the need for what the police has been calling for for ages and that is for you to cooperate with them.”
The minister said the same message applies for those who know of people hiding illegal firearms.
Comments
carltonr61 2 years, 1 month ago
The gangs control Marijuana which makes them millions each year for the past 40-50 years. They supply the domestic market from sources in mostly Jamaica. Locally the market brings in about $100,000.00 every three days With Jamaican doing away with expert experienced Bush farmers for legal industrialization the prises have gone up. Lab Marijuana made to scientific specifications of light and sleep at the right time, producing only female plants, water and food to produce 3% THC to CBD medical grade for hours of relaxation, pain, swelling and stress/anxiety relief. The withdrawal symptoms are when you know you have a problem, like with me chocolate, just have to eat , it is really irritating, but dealt with in the same manner. Sweets lead to deadly debilitating diabetes lost of limbs, organ damages,but don't touch my sweets addiction. Dem toe itch feel good. Yea us fools. Anyhow mouth done watering body hype to go search for chocolate cake.
carltonr61 2 years, 1 month ago
Guilt is setting in now. Gat to exercise hard hard in theorizing. Back to the scene the crime that Canada is most aggressive to dominate the whole Bahamian Marijuana currency. But to tell the Police to go after local weed tax evaders smells fishy indeed. Marijuana exclusively and protectionism that dictates if sourcing could come from only one jurisdiction barring local in home grown or local native indiginous Rasta fears go be expected. There is a regime if silence in the air whenever dictatorial Minnis laws are on the white paper.
John 2 years, 1 month ago
They want you believe it’s about the gangs and marijuana but someone need to explain how the number of liquor stores in the inner city TRIPLED since the pandemic began. Who owns these businesses and who is granting the licenses? They use to say ‘In Nassau there is a church and a bar on every corner. Now there’s less churches and TWO bars on every corner. And because these new boys also have a restaurant license, they be cranking out rum almost 34/7, wholesale and retail. The narrative that the gangs are in war for drug turf is a lie. People who sell drugs do so to make money and so they keep a low profile. They don’t get into gun battles. The nature of gangs is to disrupt peaceful communities and cause mayhem and commit murder. They sell drugs to support their operations. And if all the killings are about drugs, then the government should move to legalize marijuana and thus defund the gangs. Then there needs to be a publicity campaign against gangs. In the height of the pandemic the Covid-19 ads and the ‘get vaccinated ‘ ads were every three minutes in some cases. Start ad campaigns against gangs, guns and domestic violence. The common slogan is ‘if you see something, say something.’ The public does not trust the police enough to turn someone in. The murder at government house, which is supposed to be the most secure compound in the country still remains unsolved, and the midday massacre of half a dozen Bahamians. The black hawk invasions on local communities. So the assault is not just gangs. Fix the country!
carltonr61 2 years, 1 month ago
Restaurant license used to be inspected for male and female bathrooms also. More liquor stores went up for real in three years than in 60 yeas of both UBP and PLP. One time the law allowed a protest around an applicaticant come within your financial boundaries seen as a threat.
mandela 2 years, 1 month ago
That was one of the main reasons the Netherlands made marijuana and hashes" ONLY" legal, it was to stop and minimize drug turf wars in their cities making the state the dealer. When the State becomes the dealer there would be no need to buy from the street peddlers making them non-existent because the state will have the best grade and cheaper and legal, so patrons won't have to sneak or hide to purchase their medicine, also it would stop our young men of wanting as a profession to sell marijuana and really go and look for a legal sustaining job So from day one of the state becoming the seller the turf war will dissipate. If the webshops were still illegal and underground like marijuana is today the State would not have gotten a dime and maybe would have eventually turned into an underground and illegal webshop war.
themessenger 2 years, 1 month ago
@mandela, but if you legalize it dem greedy white people ga snatch up erryting an ain nuttin ga leave over for we greedy black gang members or we greedy politian's dem. Lol.
Sickened 2 years, 1 month ago
Crime is always up under the PLP. The gangs know they in power now so they run wild. Why? Because all their lawyers are now an MP or Senator. Gangs untouchable for another 4.5 years.
JokeyJack 2 years, 1 month ago
It's always law abiding Bahamians who have to REPORT crime and criminals thereby putting their lives at risk. How many times have you heard police saying verbally and in the newspaper that "There was nothing we could do because nobody filed a report." Seriously? They live in a bubble and don't know anything that is going on, while we know everything?
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