Speculation mounting that a new Police Chief & Deputy will soon be sworn-in after ‘damning’ report

​Speculation is mounting that a new Police Chief & Deputy will soon be sworn-in, after an alleged ‘damning’ report by Jamaican Colonel Jamie Ogilvie, of the Jamaica Police Force; but Government and the Police remain silent on the post Hurricane Maria report on police conduct.
 
Colonel Jamie Ogilvie left the island about 1:00 pm on 1st February 2018, following his Inquiry into the Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force, (CDPF). He allegedly delivered his report to Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit and the Minister of National Security Rayburn Blackmore.
 
According to a source, the report is recommending that the Chief of Police and his Acting Deputy “demit office in the public’s interest.”
 
The Jamaica Defense Force (JDF) Colonel’s review of the Commonwealth of Dominica Police is alleged to have made several recommendations as well as a few observations.
 
1.    The Police Force needs major and immediate changes at the helm if they are to accomplish these basic tenets of National Security in enforcing the law, apprehending offenders, preventing crime, preserving the peace and providing services to the public.
2.    The leadership of the force had no operational plan for a category five hurricane.
3.    The Chief of Police only ordered Superintendent Richmond Valentine to prepare an operation order, three days after Hurricane Maria.
4.    The Chief of Police failed to take sound advice from his Gazetted officers prior to and after the hurricane.
5.    The Chief of Police is not to be trusted as he attempted by action to post date an operation order in complicity with the Superintendent of operations.
6.    The Chief of Police displayed poor leadership in a briefing at Police Headquarters by instructing police officers” Do not put yourself in trouble for people looting after a hurricane.”
7.    According to the report, the Police Commissioner “ordered the S.S.U to remain at Morne Bruce and after the hurricane most of them went home rather than being deployed to secure the city of Roseau”.
 
Some of the other observations allegedly made in the report include:
 
8.    By complicit action or and inaction of the Chief of Police, police officers permitted the looters to ravage the city of Roseau ceaselessly for two consecutive weeks and took no action to enforce the laws of the land.
9.    The Chief of Police displayed utter disregard and insolence to the Minister of National Security by refusing to sign 100 legitimate curfew passes for emergency and essential services personnel.
10.                    The eventual deployments of Police officers were primarily unsupervised, matrix-like and juniors were left dangerously and riskily unattended which caused the contentious and unjustified death of a young man at Fond Cole”.
 
The Acting Deputy was also criticized in the report.
 
The Colonel allegedly recommended that “the post of Deputy is above his capacity by his own actions and inaction in the post, as he did not advise, support or recommend to the Chief of Police on the following:

1. A human resource audit…
2. An operation plan prior and post Hurricane Maria.
3. Emergency communication system.
4. Poor Advice and Directive on investigations of the looting at Roseau.
5. The ineffective and lackadaisical investigations of the shooting death of the Fond Cole youth for a generator”.

Some who claim to have seen the report say it is not surprising that the Colonel’s recommendations strongly advocate that the force is severely deficient in upper level management, and that in the future, positions must be filled on the basis of preparedness, transition planning and capacity.
 
Additionally, information has revealed that a former Chief of Police is to return to head the Police Force, and the head of the CID to be his deputy, as Daniel Carbon and Davidson Valerie demit office.”
 
Q95 has not been able to get any response or comment from the Government or from the Chief of Police, on the matter.