A total of $36 million earned by criminals through illicit activities was forfeited to the Government between August and September, the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s Criminal Records Office (CRO) has disclosed.

In a release yesterday, the Constabulary Communication Network (CCN) said that offenders in the county of Surrey accounted for the bulk of the cash, $33 million, while offenders in Cornwall were responsible for $2.5 million. The remaining sum of $500,000 was confiscated from criminals in Middlesex.

The money came from 406 individuals, mostly males, who together will give up 457 years of their lives based on the sentences that were handed down in the nation’s courts over the two-month period, the CCN stated.

“Again, the cost was highest in the eastern end of the island, where Kingston and St Andrew accounted for 135 of the 145 years handed down in the county of Surrey. In keeping with the pattern, Cornwall was second, with the courts in St James having the distinction of handing down 96 of the 122.5 years given to offenders in that area,” it added.

“Drug-related offences were the most popular, with assault, fraud, and gun-related charges increasing. However, the JCF has identified such and have implemented measures to tackle individuals with such purview,” the CCN said.

In the meantime, the Police High Command said it has already identified and have implemented the appropriate measures to deal with the offenders.

The high command pointed to the recent launch of Operation Resilience, aimed at reducing the current spike in the murders by curtailing gun activities, and the continued work of the Community Safety and Security Branch to steer young people away from crime.

Commissioner Owen Ellington, for his part, issued an appeal for individuals to consider the high cost that crime incurs and how it affects not only them, but their families and all Jamaicans.

“A life of crime is a bad investment,” he warned.