ASSISTANT Commissioner Justin Felice, the fifth policeman recruited from overseas to the senior ranks of the constabulary, vowed yesterday to spend his first 12 months on the job raising the ‘fear of detection’ among corrupt cops.

“.If police officers step outside of the law I will investigate those allegations,” said Felice, who made inroads as senior director of investigations with the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

“My message is clear: unethical or corrupt behaviour is not acceptable and will not be tolerated within the police force,” he added.

Felice was yesterday officially introduced to journalists at a press conference held at the Office of the Commissioner of Police in Kingston.

The 51-year-old crimefighter who arrived in the island two months ago has been put in charge of the constabulary’s Anti-Corruption Branch, which was recently separated from the Professional Standards Branch.

Felice, noting that there was a “serious challenge in the lack of public confidence in policing with the alarming murder rate and the unacceptable level of police shootings” and “a level of violence which has to be stopped”, said there was need for a major shift in public policy.

He said, too, that there was need for a “whistle-blowing policy or a reporting wrong-doing policy”, where persons with knowledge of corrupt practices could come forward in confidence and share what they know.

At the same time, the assistant commissioner said the Government’s decision to put in place an independent prosecutor to investigate corruption would enhance the speed at which cases brought against police officers were brought before the courts and dispensed with, instead of being allowed to languish.

“I think all politicians on both sides will agree there is a block at the moment in the timeliness of bringing individuals to court and certainly one of the bits of work that I will have to do is look at those blocks with stakeholders over the next three years,” Felice said, adding that this would help with the timely administering of justice.

On the matter of dealing with police officers who leak information about police operations to criminals, Felice was no less clear.

“They will be investigated, it may be the officer has committed a criminal offence by attempting to pervert the course of justice; the ultimate sanction is dismissal. Historically, it is a very difficult area to look at, but it needs to be looked at,” Felice told the Observer.

In the meantime, he said the adoption of a “need to know policy” would ensure that only persons who “needed to know” would be informed of police operations, thus reducing opportunities for leaks. He called on fellow members of the JCF, the public and other segments of society to assist him in carrying out his task.

Speaking against the background of his experiences in Northern Ireland which faced extreme levels of violence and public disorder, Felice said the Jamaican situation was not much different. However, he was confident that he would be able to deliver.

“Change has been achieved, the public has 70 per cent confidence in the police service and over 80 per cent confidence in the police ombudsman’s office. It should be a blueprint for Jamaica to follow; the wheel does not need reinventing,” he said.

He said emphasis would be placed on the training of recruits and the introduction of educational programmes, among other things, during his tenure.