Commissioner of Police Richard Boyce has warned Barbadians that anyone who fires upon officers “is attacking the State itself”, following Wednesday’s deadly sequence of events in which police were under fire during a high-speed pursuit.
He was speaking yesterday at The Barbados Police Service Headquarters, Roebuck Street, St Michael, when he described the confrontation as one of the most serious acts of hostility toward law enforcement in months and made it clear that the service would not retreat from violent offenders.
“We viewed that incident very, very seriously. It is a no-no as far as we are concerned. We will fight fire with fire. When officers come under deadly fire, there is no limit to the response we will take,” the Commissioner stated.
The shooting unfolded shortly after a killing in President Kennedy Drive, where two armed men fled on a motorcycle. As police moved to intercept the suspects along Goodland Main Road, the men reportedly opened fire on officers, striking a police vehicle. The assailants later crashed and fled on foot, prompting a swift response from police teams already in the district.
Boyce stressed that the rapid and coordinated response was far from coincidence.
“From our observation of what has been happening in the country in terms of firearms, we have a dedicated operation moving currently. The persons who responded were part and parcel of that type of intervention. When that report came in, they were within seconds on board where that incident occurred.” (CLM)
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