Law enforcers on Friday seized a number of motorcycles during an operation on Knutsford Boulevard in New Kingston staged in response to increasing reports of robberies committed by motorcycle riders.

Bearers and delivery men were most affected by the police action in which most of the motorcycles were confiscated because their insurance had expired.

Superintendent Mevrol Smith of the Counter Terrorism and Organised Crime (CTOC) Investigations Branch told the Jamaica Observer that the clampdown was the start of a drive to deal with the robberies.

“We are just doing some police work,” the superintendent said. “The bikemen are involved in a lot of robberies so we are trying to focus on them. They have been carrying out a lot of robberies outside financial places like the banks where they know people withdraw money. This is an ongoing drive.”

But some of the affected motorcyclists complained that the seizures robbed them of their opportunity to earn an income to feed their families and complete back-to-school shopping.

One 19-year-old biker, who said he was a bearer, cried when he realised the police would not overlook the fact that he was not in possession of a licence and valid insurance papers. He said that his learner’s licence was destroyed after it got wet while carrying out his daily delivery duties in the rain.

“Beg you a chance nuh, mumma,” he appealed to a female cop.

The policewoman, however, replied, “That’s not how it goes. If we allow you to go with the motorcycle without papers and you meet in an accident, what is going to happen to everybody else? It is going to be a problem. We can’t just think about you, we have to think about the safety of the public.”

He responded, “Mi understand weh yuh a seh but, but just gi mi a chance nuh?”

The policewoman, however, was not moved. “If you understand, I shouldn’t be repeating myself. That’s not how it goes. The law is the law. I am not the writer or the maker of it. I am just executing the law. I don’t have those powers to give you a bly to go with a motorcycle that is not insured. I cannot do that,” she told him.

Other bikers complained that they ought to have received tickets for driving without insurance and allowed to continue their work.

“A big idiot thing a gwaan. For no insurance, dem coulda even give you a ticket. Yuh si where they come and stop, which part business place deh. No idlers nah come right yah so, badman. We hear bout the robberies dem, enuh, and si wah a gwaan, but di man dem literally know who a do di robberies. Yeng-yeng bike nah grab nuh bag or nothing. A pure twister a grab things out yah,” said one bearer who gave his name only as Denton.

“Mi feel a way because mi have a portion a work inna mi bag. Mi have bank fi go, mi fi go a Guardsman, mi have dung a Dolphin Pharmacy fi go. A crazy drop off mi have. Mi have drop off fi do a Hawkeye. Mi a show di police dem seh mi have all di people dem money inna mi bag and you a lef mi stranded? Dem not even woulda write a ticket. We a hear seh wrecker fee a go cost $12,500. We haffi go look money fi license di bike and den haffi go find $12,500 fi wrecker fee. A ride wi ride for a living and di man dem a overdo it,” Denton lamented.

Another bearer, Tyrone, told the Observer that he did not have the insurance papers for the motorbike because his boss was in possession of the documents.

“Mi borrow the bike from mi boss, so a him have the insurance papers, but the police dem nuh waan tek nuh talk because dem a target wi,” he said.

“One man a wait pon mi for him package. Mi supposed to go Lyndhurst Road and mi can’t get fi move. Mi have mi grandpickney dem fi tek care of, enuh. Weh mi a go get money from now? For no insurance, that is a ticket offence,” Tyrone said, while holding up a copy of the Observer showing a story featuring his twin granddaughters who had excelled academically despite studying in the dark as thugs traded bullets.

Another man, Palmer, said he has three children who will be going back to school on Monday and blamed the police for forcing him to spend what he didn’t have. He said he understood that he should be driving without insurance but “sometimes a just the circumstances. You done know seh wi a ghetto youth, enuh. A over $20,000 fi insurance so wi try mek sure seh wi have the fitness and registration”.