The Tribune

THE US Embassy in Nassau has advised American citizens to “exercise vigilance” in New Providence due to an increase in reported violent crime.

According to a security alert posted to its website on Wednesday, the embassy said there have been several tourist robberies reported recently while also noting the increase in gang-related killings in Nassau.

“Over the past month, tourists have reported to the embassy four armed robberies,” the alert noted. “These armed robberies occurred both in areas frequented by tourists, as well as on site or in the vicinity of short-term vacation rental properties without private security.

“In recent months, there has also been an increase in homicides that are primarily gang-related and affecting the local population in areas of Nassau generally not frequented by tourists.”

The embassy advised US citizens to be aware of their surroundings; use caution when walking or driving at night; not to physically resist any robbery attempt; to remove all items of value from plain sight from vehicles and to review personal security plans.

The warning comes after Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis called an “urgent” crime conclave in March following a spike of murders.

At a press conference earlier this month, Mr Davis told reporters his government would introduce a number of crime-fighting measures which include increased police presence in inner-city communities, the creation of a specialised police task force and focused attention to bettering mental health.

 Mr Davis said at the time that evidence suggests that most of the country’s recent murders appeared to be gang-related and added that many retaliation acts were now being carried out after being “postponed” due to COVID-19 lockdowns and curfews, which have since ended.

 However, Mr Davis said his administration is taking a “strategic” and “unified” approach to tackling gang violence, with specific focus on hotspot communities.