Vandals warned to leave CCTV cameras alone

The department responsible for the monitoring and maintenance of the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras erected across the island has expressed concern about vandalism of the technology.

The cameras, erected by the Information Technology Services Division (ITSD) which falls under the purview of the Ministry of Finance, have been installed across mainland St Vincent from Layou on the Leeward side, to Georgetown on the Windward side.

Speaking on the November 7, 2024 edition of Cop Chat on WeFM, Kenual Thompson of the ITSD, said there have been some incidents of cameras being damaged, specifically in the Paul’s Avenue area.

“It’s there for our protection, not to infringe on anyone’s privacy,” he stressed.

The community was a major talking point across social media and other news outlets, after a resident, Jawanza “Sanga” Fraser was gunned down outside a shop in September. An image of the main suspect in the shooting death was captured on cameras in the vicinity of the National Lotteries Authority (NLA) headquarters.

“Since the implementation there has been an increase in solving of crimes,” Thompson said. He revealed that footage is usually stored for up to three months and then discarded if there is no use for it.

Detective Constable with the Royal St Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (RSVGPF), Sean Roache, said the surveillance system is critical as it acts as a deterrent to committing crimes, and assists the police in the fight against crime. He also noted that it strengthens cases taken before the court by providing support for eye-witness testimony.

“When it comes to policing, it reduces the amount of manpower that is needed inside the area. Although people speak about the response from police, police cannot be everywhere. We are not omnipresent.

The technology cannot stand by itself, it also needs someone to break down what is happening saying five offenses were committed. Simply saying that without any deeper analysis is stating facts that doesn’t give information.”

In Phase Two of the nation-wide surveillance system, Thompson explained that installations will be done in communities located in the interior as well as in the Grenadines. He said this phase is already underway and will see the installation of PTZ cameras – pan, tilt, zoom, which allow cameras to have a wider range of motion, as well as LPR, License Plate Recognition, cameras.

Thompson said he hopes that soon, Artificial Intelligence technology can be integrated into the surveillance system which can cover crowd recognition and behavioural analysis.