MONTEGO BAY, St James – Commissioner of Police Owen Ellington has reiterated that amendment to the Evidence Act which would allow lottery scam victims abroad to give evidence from their homeland, will be of great assistance in the local law enforcement’s struggle to arrest the cyber crime.

” It is something we have taken up with the government already…. asking for amendment to the Evidence Act which would enable victims of crime of the lottery scam to stay abroad and give evidence there without coming to Jamaica,” the police commissioner said.

He added: ” It would be helpful for us if our courts would accept the statements in the manner that they are recorded by law enforcement abroad. The amendments to the Evidence Act would make a huge difference in that regard”.

The police commissioner who was speaking on Tuesday

during the PSOJ President’s Forum on National Security, held in Montego Bay at the Ritz Carlton Golf and Spa Resort, disclosed that the police are working assiduously to get offenders arrested in connection with the scam, extradited to the United States where they could face up to 22 years in prison.

” And that is why we are working so hard to get many of them extradited because then they will begin to see serious law enforcement efforts coming down against their crimes,” Ellington stated. “But they (scammers) are taking advantage of the difference of laws in Jamaica. They do not go to prison for these offences, they are granted bail and as soon as they appear in court, they are fined insignificant sums when compared to the amounts of money that they earn from these criminal activities ………so they exploit these weaknesses in our laws”.

He noted however that since the start of the year the police have been making a dent in the illegal sweepstakes. But, he bemoaned that most of the “hundreds of persons” arrested in connection with the illegal activity, have been released on bail after spending a short period in jail.

” Many persons who have been arrested recently out here in Montego Bay for the lottery scam, I think all of them, are on bail now which is again another problem for us because as long as criminals have the freedom to move and to operate and as long as they are benefiting financially from the crimes that they commit, they are not going to stop,” Ellington disclosed.

He recommended that only way to deter these offenders is to “deny them freedom of movement and freedom of action”.

“Which means that whenever they are arrested for these kinds of offences countries that are serious about this type of crime will immediately imprison them, give them fast trials and once they are convicted they go to prison for a long time”.