‘No killer squad!’ - Top cop shoots down rumours of police hit team

Police Commissioner Dr Kevin Blake has dismissed claims that a so-called "killer squad" is operating within the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), calling the idea illogical and harmful to both officers and the public.

"I don't know from where that comes, right? But that's absolutely not how we operate. We have no such thing," Blake said during a post-cabinet media briefing on Thursday, where government and law enforcement officials addressed questions regarding national security. Addressing the uptick in police-involved shootings, which have resulted in swirling allegations even as murders decline islandwide, Blake said such rumours demoralise hard-working cops, who are already operating under intense pressure.

"This sometimes forms a significant distraction to my men and women when they are out there facing these individuals on a daily basis," he said, noting that the country records more than 1,000 murders a year. "We have to be careful when we say these things, because at the end of the day, there's a thing that we call self-preservation. And when you get police in self-preservation mode, it is the citizens who suffer."

His comments come as the JCF confirmed it had conducted one of the largest weapons seizures in Jamaican history, involving 233 firearms and more than 40,000 rounds of ammunition being intercepted at the port. The seizure included 74 rifles and 159 handguns. Minister of National Security Dr Horace Chang said the arms cache could "equip a company of soldiers", and praised the work of Jamaica Customs Agency in making the bust.

"That level of ammunition on the streets with these weapons is designed to create mayhem by a distorted and cruel mind and that must be stopped," Chang said.

Blake opined that the seizure is a testament to the tireless work of the security forces.

"This is what my men and women are up against every single day," he said. "And so I find it difficult for us not to understand what is logical and quickly push something that is as illogical as that."

He also dismissed the notion of rogue units operating without oversight.

"The JCF of today, if you notice, there is no one individual, there is no one formation, there is no one name. The name-brand policing era has gone. What you hear is the Jamaica Constabulary Force," he said. "We probably have the largest number of oversight bodies in any police organisation in this side of the world."

Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness linked the historic gun seizure to wider reforms under the Plan Secure Jamaica initiative. He pointed to legislative changes, a gun amnesty, and partnerships with international agencies, including the US, and technology upgrades at Customs.

"Our capacity is now here, and we are going to drive the problem all the way down," Holness said. "We will find the guns and we will find you."

Blake said last year was a record-breaking one in terms of firearm recovery - 833.

"So far this year, over the five months, we are at 83 per cent of that figure. And that's not just large seizures like this, that is police disarming gang members in communities," he said.

Data from An Analysis of Select Violent Crimes in Jamaica 2010-2022 shows that guns are used in more than 80 per cent of all murders and play a dominant role in other violent crimes such as robberies. Despite these challenges, Blake urged the public and critics to be responsible.

"It is hard work to remove that level of thought from my members, to give them the confidence to go out there and face these challenges every day. So we can do without that type of narrative."