Determined to “break the back” of a worrying spate of deadly gun violence, the Barbados Police Service has rolled out a new unit including members of the Barbados Defence Force (BDF) who will be targeting criminals “24/7, day and night” all across the country.A tough-talking Commissioner of Police Richard Boyce made the announcement on Thursday morning during a press briefing at the District ‘A’ Police Complex, as he warned criminals that the security forces will be hunting them down, wherever they are, under Operation Restore Order.He disclosed that the unit – comprising 86 members of the Barbados Police Service along with soldiers from a reserve contingent of the BDF, whose numbers are flexible – will conduct Operation Restore Order for the next three months with the possibility of an extension.“We see it as our mission to bring back some high level of calmness, peace of mind and well-being in each and everyone in society,” the police chief declared.“Operation Restore Order is predicated on targeting specific areas where we know from our analysis, from our engagement in each and every community, looking at all areas of crime, especially firearm-enabled crimes. So, whether it is murder, whether it is discharging firearms wantonly, whether it is injuring some persons, whether it is lay-waiting persons with firearms, we are targeting those persons.”
