ST MARY, Jamaica — A former policeman has expressed concern over the lack of a functioning service vehicle at the Castleton Police Station in St Mary, stating that it’s emboldening people to commit crimes in the community.

Oswald Ayre shared his concern at an awards banquet hosted by the Devon Pen Primary and Infant School Alumni at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel, where the Member of Parliament for the area, Dr Norman Dunn, was present.

Noting that the MP is not an absentee leader, Ayre used the opportunity to call for his assistance in addressing the issue.

“We have some community issues, really, and we want him to help us with it. First and foremost is the lack of a police service vehicle at Castleton. We have some worrying, trending delinquency, morphing into gun crime, and we think the immobility of the police has emboldened people who want to commit crime, and we don’t want that in our space,” Ayre said.

“We have been developing our little space with the assistance of the MP, with the assistance of our NGOs (non-governmental organisations), and I can’t stop mentioning Wag Water Valley Development Committee,” he added.

MP Dunn acknowledged the concerns raised by Ayre and noted that he was already advanced in advocating for the community on the matter.

“Every effort has been made. The minister of national security has been apprised of the concerns and the lack of vehicle. The current superintendent also knows that…and I think the minister on a radio program had indicated that some new service vehicles are in fact coming and they are targeting the rural areas. So I’m almost certain that our rural area will be one of those and I’ll be having that conversation with him to ensure that we have the service vehicle in the Castleton service station,” MP Dunn said.

— Kelsey Thomas