The Nassau Guardian
U.S. Embassy renews crime warning
The United States Embassy in Nassau has again warned Americans living in and traveling to The Bahamas to be on “heightened alert” and “review their personal security plans” to avoid falling victim to crime.
The embassy issued a statement yesterday pointing to crimes that took place within the last month, including the attempted robbery of an armored truck in Cable Beach last week.
However, none of those incidents involved visitors, according to Assistant Commissioner of Police Anthony Ferguson.
The embassy said police “responded and neutralized” three armed men who were shooting outside Waterloo nightclub.
According to police, officers shot a suspect multiple times outside the club shortly after 2 a.m. on Friday.
Police said two victims were transported to hospital.
The embassy said that last Friday around 5:30 p.m. three suspects attempted to rob an armored truck, which was parked outside a Wendy’s restaurant on Cable Beach.
The embassy said as two security guards transferred money into the truck, the men attempted to rob them, but the guards ran into the restaurant and eluded the men.
The suspects fled when they heard police sirens, the embassy said.
“On March 20 at approximately 2 p.m., a woman sitting in her vehicle in the parking lot of Caves Village Plaza was approached by three men in a car,” read the statement.
“One of the men exited the vehicle wielding a gun and demanded that the woman get out of her car.
“The attempted carjacking was thwarted when the woman’s screaming brought other passersby, who blocked the vehicle.
“The man got out of the vehicle and escaped with his companions in their own car.”
In another incident, the embassy highlighted that police arrested three suspects, two of whom were wearing electronic monitoring devices last Monday near the Mall at Marathon.
The statement said on March 16, a man approached another man on a motorbike at Arawak Cay and demanded that he get off. When the man refused, the suspect shot him.
The embassy said armed robberies remain a major threat to U.S. citizens and Bahamians in tourist populated areas on New Providence and Grand Bahama.
“In the past year, a number of U.S. citizens have fallen victim to armed robbery,” the embassy said.
“The Bahamian government has publicly stated its commitment to fighting crime and has increased anti-crime measures.
“Among the measures now being taken are increased police patrols and traffic stops.
“We remind U.S. citizens driving in The Bahamas to carry identification and their driver’s licenses and to cooperate with the police at traffic stops and identification checks.”
The embassy encouraged U.S. citizens to enroll in the Department of State’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program to get security updates and to be more easily contacted in case of an emergency.
The embassy has issued several similar warnings over the past few months, the most recent being in January.
Commissioner of Police Ellison Greenslade has said that up to March 19, all categories of violent crime with the exception of murder has trended downward.
Ahead of the embassy statement being released, Prime Minister Perry Christie yesterday renewed his commitment to “smother and suffocate” crime.
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