THE police will send a team for security to the next St Catherine Parish Council meeting, says Spanish Town mayor Dr Andrew Wheatley, to guard fearful parish councillors who are worried they might be the next victims of escalating crime in the parish capital.

Last month, several councillors threatened not to turn up for the January 12 monthly general meeting, fearing for their personal safety and the possibility of being attacked.

Said Wheatley in assurance: “The police should be on hand for that meeting and we are anticipating the police for the following meetings.”

An officer at the Spanish Town Police Station said the police have always provided security for past council meetings, but said it is normally a street-based unit.

“We normally send a vehicle to stay in that area,” he told the Observer. “What may happen is, due to a lack of resources, we don’t send people to the location, but we have always been present. That is a must.”

Last month, council members vowed not to attend this month’s meeting unless uniformed security personnel on spot.

Superintendent Kenneth Wade, police commander for Spanish Town, said security for the parish council meetings was really the responsibility of the auxiliary police force, the Island Special Constabulary Force (ISCF).

“It is the Island Special Constable Force that is responsible for security of parish council buildings islandwide,” said Wade.

“However, I have spoken to the ISCF about it and the ISCF should have already met with the secretary of the parish council and arranged for some security for them,” said the police commander.

The councillors fears are driven not by past attacks on them, but the council building’s proximity to the gang-controlled Rivoli area.

The volatile community is located close to the spot where a car, transporting Member of Parliament for Central St Catherine Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange and her entourage, was fired on by a gunman last September, killing one man and injuring another.

The gun attack occurred as Grange was leaving a ‘peace meeting’ with representatives of the two gangs – Clansman and One Order – held at the council chambers.

The councillors have since been asking, without success, for visible police presence at the council.

Secretary/manager Michael Morris said that he wrote several letters to the Spanish Town police appealing for security, but got no response.

But Wade said he has, on previous occasions, assigned police security for meetings and that no one from the council had advised him that they were no-shows.

According to Wade based on a report he heard last week he immediately spoke with the ISCF to ensure that security is in place.

Yesterday, Wheatley told the Observer that if the police did not deploy security for his meeting, he would consider other options.

“We would be looking into hiring a private security firm to provide security for the meeting,” the mayor said.