THE VALLEY, Anguilla – The Governor of this British Overseas Territory, Julia Crouch and recently elected Premier, Cora Richardson, have held talks with the United Kingdom Minister with responsibility for Overseas Territories, Stephen Doughty, on the issue of crime on the Caribbean island.
Premier Cora Richardson and UK Minister, Minister Stephen DoughtyA statement issued by the Office of the Governor on Tuesday, said that the discussions took place last week and that the Governor and Premier “outlined local action being taken, including the further recruitment of police officers some of whom will be specialist armed response officers”.
The statement said that the discussions also centred on the government’s decision to extend the contracts of the current six Authorised Firearms Officers for six months as well as increasing the ranks of the Royal Anguilla Police Force.
The statement quoted Doughty as praising the work of local police officers in “such challenging circumstances, and confirmed a package of UK support for the Royal Anguilla Police Force”.
It said that these include UK funding for the deployment of police officers from the Cayman Islands, extending the UK funded police investigator team and equipment for the Royal Anguilla Police Force, including a new drone.
“The Minister, Premier and Governor condemned the recent shootings. They confirmed their unwavering commitment to work together to combat criminal activity, to tackle the causes of crime and to bring to justice those responsible,” the statement added.
Last Friday, the police launched an investigation into the murder of 31-year-old Rashe Hodge, whose body was found on the roadway.
The police said several spent gun shells were recovered at the scene of what has “now been officially classified as a homicide”.
