Victims blame police as 11 cars stolen from Divali Nagar site

Eleven cars were stolen from in and around the Divali Nagar site in Chaguanas between November 5 and last Wednesday night. Several cars were also broken into and valuables stolen. Reports of the thefts were made to the Chaguanas Police Station, but up until yesterday none of the stolen vehicles had been recovered. Angry victims told Sunday Newsday they felt safe parking their cars because of the assurances given by the police, that round-the-clock patrols were in effect at the Nagar site and they did not need to worry over the safety of their cars.

One victim told Sunday Newsday due to the loss of his car he has vowed never to return to the Nagar site again. He was critical of the failure of the police to put in place effective measures to nab the car thieves who are usually on the prowl in areas which attract a large gathering of persons. “We feel that the persons entrusted with the Divali Nagar site should lobby the Government to construct a paying car park with security guards to ensure that vehicles are protected.” Another victim said he had lost confidence in the police as a result of the larceny of his car. The angry father of five said he was in the habit of taking his family to the Divali Nagar site every year and felt the police had enough time to put in place effective measures to ensure that vehicles were not stolen.

“We hear the police boasting that kidnappings down, but what about the ineffectiveness of the police to deal with crime and larceny of vehicles in such a small country as ours,” said the angry victim. Sunday Newsday learned that the Task Force, Chaguanas CID, the uniform section,  E-999 and Crime Supression Unit carried out patrols during the Divali season. Yesterday, Chaguanas Mayor Suruj Rambachan expressed disappointment over the level of policing during the days and nights that activities were held at the Nagar site. He said the police were around, but they never displayed effective policing. He feels that since the activities at the Nagar now attract scores of persons, the police should put in place an effective plan to deal with larceny of vehicles.