The Commissioner of Police in the Royal Anguilla Police Force, Mr. Keithly Benjamin, has expressed a high level of satisfaction following the recent Summer Festival Celebration.

Commissioner Keithly Benjanmin

In a release to the media, Mr. Benjamin wrote: “Although saddened by the loss of Shaun Mussington, to whose family I extend deepest sympathy, the celebrations were generally incident free. The concept of Unity which was echoed throughout seemed to have reminded everyone that this is our country and any form of violence will negatively impact all of us.”

Benjamin pointed out that there were some persons who were arrested because they failed to heed Police warning against crime and violence, “and are presently recognizing that they did so to their detriment.” He said the majority of them were currently serving prison terms.

“This signifies that the judiciary is taking a strong position regarding lawless [behavior] particularly when persons are warned about the likely consequences and chose to disregard such a warning,” the Commissioner went on.

The Top Cop applauded the support Police received from the Chairman of the Festival Committee and the Festivals Coordinator who, he said, personally ensured that all Police concerns regarding security were “dealt with.” He noted that it was well known that there was a lot of apprehension leading up to the Summer Festival Celebration and that “certain pundits continued to induce fear in the would be participants.” He said, however, that the collective effort of the Festival Committee, the general public, the Government of Anguilla and the Royal Anguilla Police Force demonstrated a determination that they had not forgotten the unfortunate incident that occurred during Last Lap 2008 when someone was killed.

Suprintendant Rudolph Proctor

Mr. Benjamin commended all the Police and Security Officers for a job well done: “It is fitting therefore that I highlight the yeoman effort by the members of the Royal Anguilla Police Force including our Special Constables and Sherriff Security Services. We know it was a challenge and the unified approach, commitment, dedication and resilience shown have paid off.”

Benjamin also thanked the general public who took time to express their appreciation and admiration for the work of the officers. “As we look towards 2010, all things being equal, we commit to improve on what we would have done in 2009,” he said.
Meanwhile, Superintendent of Police Rudolph Proctor remarked that there was “a sort of maturity shown on the part of Anguillian citizens and those who were participating in the events.” He highlighted some of the bands whom, he opined, showed a maturity that did not exist before: “They were quite keen, when the Police needed to react, to indicate through their systems that the Police was taking some sort of action and they needed their (the public) cooperation. It was throughout the major Street Jams…that Police were assisted greatly and we want to thank the bands for that.” Proctor hoped that the level of cooperation would continue for any activity in the future.

The Superintendent echoed his Commissioner's thanks to the general public for its support during the celebration. He said people were generally supportive of the Police during the Summer Festival and contributed to highlighting some of the incidents or potential areas of concern. He expressed his pleasure that, apart from the incident where Mussington died after being accidentally run over by the truck he fell from, the Festival was “pretty incident free.”

Proctor further echoed that persons who did not heed Police warnings that were given prior to and during the Festival were now doing prison time. He stressed that citizens and visitors alike contributed to a safe and free Summer Festival.

| Printer-friendly page | Send this article to a friend |

World News