The full municipal implementation of the closed circuit television (CCTV) program for New Providence will be complete before the end of the year -- an initiative that the government and police believe will help significantly in the fight against crime.
Head of the Central Division of the Police Force, Superintendent Leon Bethell, said recently that the CCTV initiative is a huge part of the policing plan.
Statistics recently released to The Nassau Guardian revealed that in the first seven months of 2011, crime overall was up by 16 percent compared to the previous year.  The numbers show that cases of murder, rape, attempted raped, armed robbery, robbery, housebreaking, stealing, stealing from vehicles and stolen vehicles all increased this year compared to last.
But the police believe that the fully implemented CCTV program will help reduce those statistics.
Minister of National Security Tommy Turnquest told The Guardian recently that his ministry is currently reviewing proposals from the seven companies who submitted bids for the implementation of CCTV.
"Once that's done, we'll then have it reviewed by the government before making a final decision," he said.
Currently there are several mini-pilot CCTV projects, however once the full program is implemented, designated "hot spots and strategic places" around New Providence will be monitored on a 24-hour basis.
The government has allocated $500,000 in this year's budget for the program.  While Turnquest could not provide an exact date of expected implementation, he said it will be done fairly soon.
"Definitely before the end of the year," he added.
Mini-CCTV programs are in operation in areas downtown including around the Central Police Station, the Churchill Building, Woodes Rogers Wharf, the East Street South Police Station, and areas in Cable Beach.
"And so now we're talking about tying it all in," Turnquest said, adding that the government met with a consultant out of the U.S. who has been helping with that effort.
The mini-program has resulted in the closure of many cases.  When the full system is put in place, the returns are expected to be more significant as it relates to the fight against crime, Turnquest said.
"The CCTV network is to be more than a crime prevention tool; it is expected to also act as a deterrent to criminals and would be criminals.  The initiative is the result of a partnership and collaboration between the government and the business community and is indicative of the united front that we must have in the fight against crime," Turnquest said.
With the mini-program already implemented in the Central Division, Supt. Bethell said it allows his officers a wider range of police coverage.
"What we have been doing is manning the CCTVs and directing our patrols based on virtual policing.  It impacts our ability to look all along the territory in the central division and directing the officers based on what we see, in terms of what areas need more attention and so on.  We can also prevent crime from happening," Bethell said recently.
He added that once the full program is launched it will increase the initiatives of the police in the area of crime prevention.
"That's what we want to strive to do.  We want to prevent crime," Bethell said.

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