The Royal Barbados Police Force has been armed with a new weapon to boost its crime fighting efforts.
Today, the force launched its Police Records Management Information System (PRMIS) designed to enable law enforcement officials to share information about crime trends in real time.
It will also offer Barbadian crime fighters the ability to link suspects, incidents, victims, and locations to enhance their ability to capture wrongdoers and solve crimes.
The PRMIS System, which is being supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) would be piloted at the Hastings and Speightstown police stations and Central Police Headquarters, Bridgetown.
From left, Deputy Commissioner of Police Erwin Boyce, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Legal Affairs Yvette Goddard, United States Ambassador to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Linda Taglialatela, and UNDP Resident Representative Urgo Blanco, during the presentation of equipment to the Royal Barbados Police Force to assist with the Police Records Management Information System (PRMIS).
While delivering remarks at the ceremony for the handing over of equipment to the police held at Prince Cave Auditorium, Station Hill, St Michael, United States Ambassador to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean Linda Taglialatela noted that as the Caribbean experiences increasingly high levels of crime and violence, there was a need to review previous models of addressing these challenges.
The ambassador noted that what worked before may not be sufficient to cope with increasingly violent, complex, and sophisticated criminal enterprises. She said the lack of access to reliable, accurate and timely data on criminal patterns, trends, and incidents hinders the ability to successfully fight crime.
With the implementation of PRMIS, Barbados’ police officers will be able to benefit from the leads, tips, and patterns developed by their colleagues elsewhere.
The system will also introduce a smart technology that will link up cases and suspects and flag them to the investigating officers. Through these systems, the Barbados Police Force will gain vital intelligence on crime hot spots and persons of interest.
“We anticipate that the Government of Barbados will continue expanding to other stations and parishes until there is coverage over all of Barbados. In Barbados, these systems will go beyond the police and will facilitate sharing of crime data among key agencies within the justice system, leading to enhanced coordination and greater efficiency in crime prevention and response.
“I want to take this opportunity to commend Attorney General Dale Marshall for his leadership and commitment to this important project and our Cari-SECURE partnership. I also want to congratulate the Royal Barbados Police Force on this important milestone.
“I want to tell criminals watch out. We’re teaming up and we are on to you. You’ve never had a tougher or more committed opponent than the RBPF and its partners,” Ambassador Taglialatela said.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Erwin Boyce who thanked USAID and UNDP for their continued support of local and regional policing, reaffirmed the commitment of the RBPF to the success of the project.
He said over the years, one of the charges brought against the force has been the less than timely access to information on crime-related data.
“Today, brings with it a renewed resolve, to take the steps required to remove these pockets of frustration. Indeed, steps have already been taken to ensure that this pilot project phase be given the strategic support that is critical to its success,” Deputy Commissioner Boyce said.
