WHEN INDECOM was first being developed into an organisation I tried to explain the consequences of this creation and its long-term impact on crime and gang growth. I explained that, having an organisation that benefits if police officers are charged, and can only continue to access foreign funding or increase same if either police officers are destroyed or incidents of shootings are reduced, is likely to cause police officials to avoid situations that may result in combat.

The result of this is gangs becoming more brazen and an increased homicide rate. Some understood it better when I broke it down like this, but many still didn’t quite see the big deal. I get this same response when I explain to many people that the scamming epidemic is the most dangerous culture we have adopted since gangs where formalised in the 1970s. This comes from the misnomer that scamming is a victimless crime. They believe that the scammers tell 100 people that they won the lottery and that each individual sends a relatively small amount to the scammer.

Well, scamming has morphed from that, and even then there are serious consequences if it was, as many imagined, ‘a minor impact on many’. Similar to what occurs in illegal gambling — and the most obvious consequence is that criminals get money, whether it is scamming, extortion or illegal gambling — the results are the same.

They use the funds for dangerous activities that include buying guns, paying for people to be murdered, and the growth of gangs. Out of necessity, illegally earned money also requires muscle to protect it so gang creation and growth therefore occur.

Then there is what I call waking up the real bad dog. By this I mean they are robbing citizens of the United States (US), and they are doing it using Jamaican phone numbers and using Jamaica, obviously, as their base of operation. The US Government will not stand by and allow their citizens to be robbed in this manner. The biggest mistake Pablo Escobar ever made was to export drugs to that country. Had he not done so he would likely be alive and in business today.

Apart from the fact that the US is one of the richest countries in the world and the number one military power, it is our biggest trading partner.

If America feels that we represent a risk to its citizens it will bar numbers that begin with 876 from calling the United States. Yes, the US Government can do that and yes, it would cost us dearly.

There is also the social impact. Scammers operate in clusters and create funding for young men who, therefore, are not available for the workforce. Their type mushrooms easily because one idiot teaches 10 idiots and the negative behaviour spreads, as do the gangs it creates.

A phenomenon is created and the guy with the money is now the one who was a dunce at school, got expelled for violent or inappropriate conduct, and can barely read. This stops the marginal student from trying harder as he sees no value in getting an education to get a job cause, “Ben Up” from the academically challenged class who got expelled is now the 20-year-old with the Mercedes.

Then there is the criminalising of the legitimate businessman who takes their money in exchange for his product. Whether he is aware these are ill-gotten gains or not, he is now a player in the loop of crime and violence.

There is even the minimising of innovation and efforts to start businesses because there is no need to do so. Ironically, communism also has this effect, but that is for another discussion.

So what can we do?

Well, either long mandatory sentences like we do for gun offences, or more underhanded methods like supplying the US Government the names of suspected scammers to block possibilities of acquiring a US, British or European Union visa. This will dissuade young men from engaging in the practice.

Use public education to let young men know that it destroys any possibility of ever being issued a firearm licence. This is real. If you are a scammer the National Intelligence Bureau report will expose it to the Firearm Licensing Authority (FLA) and you will never possess a gun licence. This is a fact. The current administration at the FLA will never grant you a permit if you are scamming, and this is a time in our history when you cannot bribe anyone to get a gun permit.

Whatever method we choose to end this epidemic, we need to. We also need to prepare for what crime they will graduate to when we end scamming as a part of our criminal landscape. The criminals, whether it’s the clown who is calling the people overseas with that ridiculous accent, or the jackass who is allowing money to be transferred to his account, will not get a job when scamming ends. But they will still have guns. They will also have a thirst for the life they have now tasted, and will rob and kill to maintain it.

We have a lot of work to do. We have to kill the culture with hard prison time and with the creation of other consequences like the aforementioned visa restrictions, but we have to prepare. We failed to prepare for the deportee crisis of the 90s. We failed to prepare for the impact of INDECOM. We failed to prepare for the internationalising of our human rights issues by the local factions. We failed to prepare for the politicising of street gangs. We failed to prepare for the repealing of the Suppression of Crimes Act. We failed to prepare for the impact of the ‘Trevor MacMillan experiment’.

Let’s pretend we learnt from all of the above failures and prepare for what will happen when the US Government forces us to end scamming.

Feedback: drjasonamckay@gmail.com