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In the wake of the recent arrest of several Jamaicans in connection with a surge of armed robberies being committed on the island of St Maarten, residents have been flooding talk shows on that island with calls demanding, among other things, that visa restrictions be imposed on Jamaica.
Leader of Government Sarah Wescott-Williams has also expressed concern at the crime surge on the island, saying that the issue has been discussed by the executive council that governs the Dutch colony in the eastern Caribbean.
22-year-old suspect
The latest Jamaican arrest occurred at about 3 p.m. last Tuesday on Soualiga Road in the capital Phillipsburg. The 22-year-old suspect, W.G.J, police, said was apprehended by the Zero-Tolerance team without incident.
Police said they were acting on information that he was one of the main suspects in several robberies committed recently.
They said the suspect has been cooperating well and has so far admitted to being involved in at least seven robberies.
Also, information unearthed during their investigations led police to a home in a community called Union Farm where they seized a shotgun, an alarm pistol, a flair pistol, binoculars, black gloves, several 12-gauge shotgun cartridges, a black hooded jacket and a black backpack.
Seizure of the weapons
Unconfirmed reports said that the information that led to the seizure of the weapons and other paraphernalia was supplied by the Jamaican suspect held on Tuesday.
Reports coming out of St Maarten, that has a population of just over 80,000, said that at least 11 Jamaicans have been arrested over the last few weeks, six in the last two weeks, in connection with armed robberies or who are members of gangs operating in the 36-square mile island.
A Special Robbery Unit on the island, tasked with stemming the surge of these robberies, has reportedly made significant breakthroughs in their investigations and are working to break the back of the criminal element that seems to be heavily populated by Jamaican thugs.
Meanwhile, the crime surge has St. Maarteners including members of the Executive Council on edge. This past Wednesday, a day after the Jamaican was arrested, Wescott-Williams responding to questions from journalists said crime has become a major issue. "The surge in the rate of crime is a major concern for the government," she said adding that meetings will be held with the police on how to proceed in the face of the rising tide of crime.
She said also that requests made several years ago of the Central Government in Curacao for stricter immigration controls to be imposed on Jamaicans have been denied. Sources close to Government have suggested, however, that those immigration controls could be imposed once St. Maarten adopts country status this coming December.
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