45 ranks before the Courts

…as GPF continues to struggle to deal with rogue cops

Acting Commissioner of Police, Nigel Hoppie said notwithstanding the successes recorded in the areas of crime fighting and human resource development, the Guyana Police Force is still battling with the deviant behaviour of some ranks particularly in the area of corruption.

According to the Police Commissioner (ag), there are currently 45 police officers before the Courts on various charges inclusive of manslaughter, murder, causing actual bodily harm, simple larceny, causing death by dangerous driving and attempting to pervert the course of justice. Ten (10) ranks were also charged departmentally, Commissioner Hoppie reported.

It was disclosed that in 2021, the Office of Professional Responsibility received 202 complaints against members of the Force compared to 193 in 2020.
The Police Commissioner (ag) said despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Police Force was able to expose 1333 to critical training locally in 68 areas including Trafficking in Person (TIP), Child Abuse, Human Rights, Cyber Crime Investigation, Information Technology, Crime Scene Investigation, and Container Control. The trainings were executed by the Force in collaboration with government and other agencies, and in some instances, the US State Department.
Additionally, a number of ranks benefited from international training in areas such as Small Arms Control and Public Safety.

It was pointed out too that in 2021, 45 officers completed studies at academic institutions of which 22 graduated from the University of Guyana with Degrees and Diplomas, while the remaining 23 graduated from other institutions including Institute of Distant and Continuing Education (IDCE).
Moving forward, a Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between the Guyana Police Force and the Cacique Accounting College for the training of ranks in Accountancy and a Memorandum of Agreement has been signed with the Nations University to undertake Prosecutorial Training.