IT WAS WITH a heavy heart that the public learnt that the Cold Case Squad of the Royal Barbados Police Force, instituted by former Commissioner Darwin Dottin, is no more.
The thinking behind this unit, which started back in 2007, was that team members – with a nose for detective work – would have solved the outstanding murder cases dating back many years.
With deep and intense digging and searching, it was hoped that this unit would unearth clues that would have led to many murder mysteries being solved.
The work of the squad, it was hoped, would also have solved many unanswered questions for the relatives of the deceased, bringing some measure of closure for them.
Now that this unit has been put on ice, what will now happen with the unsolved cases that are still outstanding? How are the police planning to handle such cases, or will they remain cold and stay in the freezer until they are long forgotten?
While for much of the country life will go on, even with no apparent plan of action being put in place, this will certainly not be the case for the families still seeking some resolution in the cases of unsolved murders of relatives.
With this new development, they will probably seek comfort in the words of Assistant Commissioner of Police with responsibility for crime, Lybron Sobers, who gave the assurance that the unsolved murders would still be investigated.
We hope this is the case, especially since the squad had been able to record some success by clearing up some of the unsolved mysteries.
We continue to applaud the members of the Royal Barbados Police Force, whose mandate every day is to protect and serve the public. We recognise their important role – not an easy one by any stretch of the imagination – in maintaining law and order while often placing themselves in harm’s way.
Our police officers continue to come in for high praise from the public as they crack cases and work to reduce the level of crime in the country. Their work in this vein cannot be understated as Barbados’ reputation as a tourist destination can be seriously tarnished if the level of crime is not controlled.
We therefore urge the police to continue their work to keep this country safe.
And while we have heard the promise that unsolved cases will continue to be high priority, we now call on the force to set the record straight and say exactly why the Cold Case Squad has been disbanded. We await an explanation.