Police Commissioner Says Extension of S.O.E. Would Help

The state of emergency that came into effect three weeks ago, has resulted in the rounding up of quite a few Belize City residents who police say are active gang members involved in criminality. But since the S.O.E. was implemented, there have been several murders and shootings. And some say the S.O.E. has been ineffective in what it was designed to accomplish. Today Commissioner Williams told the media that he is of a different view and that an extension of the state of emergency would help.

 

 

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police

”The areas that we had targeted for the SOE, which was the extension area and Roaring Creek, and a part of Camalote, since the SOE, we have had no murders in those areas, and those were the two main areas that we had targeted for the SOE. It just so happened that we contemplated to have included other areas of South side Belize City, in the event that they would have acted out during that period of the SOE. And it happened that P.I.V began acting out within that period, and so they are now included in it going forward. And yes, if there’s an extension, then it is going to help us to be able to look more at the P.I.V gang and any other gang that may that we have seen developing that tendency of wanting to go out and commit any violent act against anybody.”