Atlantis President George Markantonis said the resort's owners have expressed concern about the level of crime in the country and the impact various crime warnings could have on the industry.
"They read the same newspapers we read. They have the same Google alerts we have," Markantonis told The Nassau Guardian yesterday during an interview at the resort. "These are things we talk about."
His comments came after the release of the U.S. Department of State 2014 Crime and Safety report, which details escalating levels of violent crime in New Providence.
"Crime has definitely come up," Markantonis said.
As Brookfield Hospitality moves to refinance Atlantis' debt, Markantonis said he is often called to answer questions relating to crime in the country.
"Their questions are, 'How does the crime impact tourism?'" he said, referring to Brookfield executives. "And subsequently then, 'How could it impact Atlantis in the future?'
"What are these warnings that they've read that sometimes are issued to cruise ship passengers? 'What kind of impact could that have to people coming off the ship and visiting our locations?'
"I've talked to them and I reassure them of the efforts that we make to make sure that all of our guests and employees are safe. Crime happens in every country, but it really gets a lot of publicity here because we are a smaller nation."
Markantonis said Atlantis has 400 security personnel and 32 patrol units, in addition to drug and bomb-sniffing dogs.
The crime and safety report, which was released earlier this week, also addressed concerns about crimes against visitors.
The report states that the U.S. Embassy has received an increase in reports of assaults, including sexual assaults at residences, hotel rooms, casinos, outside hotels and on cruise ships.
It said residential security remains a "great concern", with the police reporting a large number of home burglaries and break-ins, including the December 2013 robbery of Acting Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis.
"Armed robberies, property theft, purse snatchings and the general theft of personal property remain the most common crimes perpetrated against tourists," the report said.
Concern about the level of crime in New Providence has also been addressed in crime warnings by various cruise ships that stop in the capital.
The Bahamas was recently ranked number one on a list of the 'world's most dangerous cruise destinations', by www.cruiselawnews.com.
However, the list is based solely on "anecdotal" evidence, according to Jim Walker, the Florida-based maritime attorney who compiled it.
Minister of State for National Security Keith Bell said it paints the country unfairly.
Bell said while crime is a cause for concern, the method that was used to measure crime cannot be taken seriously.
Walker said he ranks countries based on the number of complaints he receives.
According to police statistics, overall crime went down by eight percent last year compared to 2012.

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