FANTINO TO TIGHTEN CRIME LINKS

HEAD OF the Toronto Police Services, Chief Julian Fantino, has
proposed to offer further assistance to the Jamaica Constabulary Force
(JCF) in its fight to reduce the spate of crime across the island.

Speaking with The Gleaner shortly after his arrival at the Norman
Manley International Airport yesterday, Chief Fantino described the
mission of his four-day visit, as an opportunity to share information
with members of the local Police Force. He said the meetings will
focus on "how we can improve our relationship and our co-operation and
offer whatever assistance we can with regard to some of the programmes
and training and specialisation that we have in our country."

His visit to Jamaica came just over eight months after he was invited
by National Security Minister, Dr. Peter Phillips. During his four-day
stay, he will be discussing crime-related issues with Minister
Phillips, Police Commissioner Francis Forbes and other top officers of
the Police Force.

He will be also meeting with various diplomats, politicians and
persons from the business fraternity. On his arrival yesterday, he was
met by Canadian High Commissioner to Jamaica, John Robinson, Assistant
Commissioners of Police Charles Scarlett and Lebert Lawrence, Senior
Superintendent Ken Fairclough and Superintendent James Forbes.

The Toronto Police Chief noted that his city has been experiencing a
significant number of gun, drugs and gang-related crimes. Over the
next two days, he will be trying to learn more about the culture and
dynamics of Jamaicans. "We have over 300,000 persons of Jamaican
origin living in and around the city of Toronto," said Chief Fantino.

A report published yesterday on the Canadian Dawn newspaper website
claimed that "the fading image" of Toronto was due to a wave of gun
violence centred on its Jamaican community and accusations that police
use racial profiling. The report said almost every weekend since last
November there have been reports of young men being gunned down on the
streets of Canada's most affluent city, which has long considered
itself a clean, safe and multi-ethnic community, unstained by the
violence and decay that have plagued many similarly sized US cities.

Much of the violence has involved Toronto's sizeable population of
Jamaican immigrants. In the most recent incident on December 9, a
young man was shot and killed at the outdoor filming of a music video
by a Jamaican reggae artist. In the two months before then, 11 people
were killed by gunfire, with several more injured, and the media
scrutiny sharpened with every death.

"What we've seen, for the most part, are gangs fighting among
themselves, primarily for turf control and for the distribution of
drugs," Norm Gardner, chairman of the Toronto Police Services Board,
was quoted as saying.

"There seems to be a relationship between some of the gang activity in
Toronto and Jamaica, where hitmen are being imported to Toronto from
Jamaica," added Mr. Gardner.