Home break-ins have caught the attention of most in St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) as word-of-mouth reports and video footage are increasingly being circulated among the public.

During the month of January widespread reports of burglaries were being reported with most of the incidents occurring in the South Central Windward area. Residents in Cedars, North Union and Biabou were falling victim to home invasions with at least one resulting in a death when a fetus reportedly died after a noxious substance was sprayed in a Cedars home by the bandits causing the mother to fall unconscious.

Earlier this month, crimes of a similar nature- home break-ins with a gas being sprayed into the house, surfaced after two burglars were caught on a home security camera.

Now a medical professional and national of India, has emerged as another victim in the stint of burglaries, and she has made a public plea for the return of a number of valuable items following the March 1, 2024, burglary at her residence.

Dr Neha Singla, in a report to local media, explained that the incident occurred in the night and the burglars made off with her passport, wallet, ID cards, along with a MacAir 2020 laptop and a hard disk with important data containing teaching materials, along with other items.

The medical doctor has put up a $1,000 reward for the return of the items or for credible information which would lead to the items being recovered.

She said that although the matter was reported to the Calliaqua Police Station, she does not wish to press any charges and is more concerned with the return of the items that are essential.

In a press conference hosted in mid-February, Divisional Commander for the South Central Division, Superintendent of Police David Trumpet presented statistics on crime occurring across the district.

The division, which includes Calliaqua, Stubbs, Mesopotamia, Biabou, Lowmans Windward, Evesham and surrounding districts, saw a slight decrease in burglaries from 2022 to 2023. Last year there were 73 reported burglaries while in 2022, 88 were recorded.