Jamaica police say they are determined to dismantle a woman-led crime syndicate so as to ensure a continued decline in criminal activities along the island’s island’s northern coast.
‘For this quarter, we will be fully pursuing this female-led robbery syndicate. We’ll be pushing hard against this syndicate to ensure that we bring the robberies right down. We’re going into the Yuletide season and we want persons to be able to shop in peace,’ Senior Superintendent Eron Samuels, told a news conference as he discussed ‘Operation Endgame,’ the new crime initiative.
The new anti-crime operation comes as police statistics show that St James has recorded 43 murders for the period January 1 to September 27, 2025, compared to 102 for the same period last year, a reduction of 57.8 per cent. Shootings have also dropped from 89 to 42 over the same comparative periods, a 52.8 per cent reduction.
Samuels said the efforts of the police in the St. James area ‘ will be relentless in ensuring that this robbery syndicate is fully demolished’, noting that the syndicate operates across several parishes.
Samuels said the work of the members of the division, including those in the zones of special operation (ZOSO) has been successful apprehending some of the main players.
ZOSOs are special security and community development measures implemented in specific communities in Jamaica to address rampant criminality or high rates of violence, transforming the areas by focusing on both law and order and social intervention for a more sustainable environment.
These zones are designated by Prime Minister Andrew Holness and involve the military and police working together with social transformation committees to achieve objectives such as enhancing the community and strengthening the police force.
‘They have made some major headway, but there are still splinters of the gang around, and with that joint effort across Area One we will see that robbery syndicate being dismantled,’ Samuels added.
Deputy Superintendent of Policce, Michael Moore, who is in charge of crime in St James, told reporters that more than a dozen perpetrators, who the police believe form part of this syndicate and operating in the St James area, have been detained.
‘Recently, we had five arrested and firearms were seized from them,’ Moore said, adding ‘these men mainly targeted our Chinese business community, and I can say with confidence right now the Chinese business community is breathing a sigh of relief, because we have arrested and charged these persons, and they are presently in custody’.
Moore said that the police have also seen where some of the bandits have moved to neighbouring parishes as a result of the relentless operational and investigative surge that the police in St James division have been doing.
Superintendent Lynroy Edwards, said the new anti-crime offensive will run into the new year and that Operation Endgame is to basically end badness and criminality in St James.
‘We have added more teeth to our activities, more assets, more intense, a combination of old and new strategies combined with our JDF (Jamaica Defence Force) partners and other formations.
‘The gangs, of course, have been feeling our effectiveness, and they are going to feel it even more, mark our word,’ he told reporters, urging Jamaicans to work with the police to ensure that people linked to criminal activities are shown that they are not welcome.
‘We just want the citizens to continue to cooperate with us, and to use a Jamaican colloquial term, continue to ‘shub dem out’, so we can keep the peace right across the parish.’