Police will be using CCTV cameras to track the movements of criminals over the Cup Match weekend.
Officers are beefing up security over the holiday weekend with fixed and mobile CCTV cameras.
The armed police respond team will be among an additional 150 officers on duty, working longer than normal shifts.
Police Reserves will also be working around the clock and the Bermuda Regiment will be helping to police the waters.
Police commissioner Michael DeSilva said they were stepping up patrols “from Wednesday afternoon right through to Monday morning.”
This will include extra policing on Thursday and Friday at Somerset Cricket Ground, as well as at all the parties and events going on across the island.
Mr. DeSilva said they were trying out new incentives to ensure the holiday wasn’t marred by violence. This comes at a time when the island is plagued by “guns and gangs”.
The police are particularly keen to avoid a repeat performance of last year’s Cup Match violence which saw a mass brawl erupting at the St. George’s clubhouse.
Mr. DeSilva, speaking at a press conference yesterday, said the police would have a “highly visible presence… We have more than enough police officers on the ground to deal with any issues, wherever they might arise.
“We will have 150 extra staff over and above the normal contingent and their shifts have been extended to 12 hours instead of eight. All that can be done will be done to make our residents and visitors safe and to make them feel safe.”
The police have teamed up with a security company to have two new fixed CCTV cameras to monitor traffic flow and record vehicle numbers if needed. This is in addition to the CCTV cameras already in place in Hamilton.
Mr. DeSilva said officers also had “the ability to place other mobile cameras in temporary positions as the need arises”.
Mr. DeSilva called the cameras a “new tool” but stressed they were not an invasion of people’s privacy as footage would only be used for “the investigation of crime”.
Using CCTV cameras outside the city is a trial run to see if police will continue to use them in the future.
From this weekend soldiers from the Bermuda Regiment’s boat troop will be drafted in to help police the marine unit. Nine soldiers will work alongside officers in police boats as and when needed.
The marine unit is one of the victims of officers being deployed to other units such as the serious crime unit and police support unit.
Mr. DeSilva said it was a case of “more oars in the water” as they made sure the ocean was properly policed over the summer months.
The “memorandum of understanding” between the police and regiment will continue until the middle of September. Home Affairs Minister David Burch has authorized the transfer of $50,000 from police funds to pay for the soldiers’ salaries.
Lt. Col. Brian Gonsalves, commanding officer of the Bermuda Regiment, said soldiers were happy to “share their expertise”.
He said: “This gives us the opportunity to demonstrate all the techniques and skills we have learned over the years. We are happy to help in this time of need.”
Everyone who visits Somerset Cricket Club, through any of the three entrance gates, will have to walk through a scanner gate. People will also be subject to searches, both themselves and their belongings.
Richard Scott, president of Somerset Cricket Club, appealed for everyone to have a safe and happy Cup Match.
He said: “We have taken the necessary measures to ensure the safety of Cup Match this year.
“I’d appeal for people to act in a responsible and respectful manner. We want to ensure that people can come out, relax and be safe for two fun-filled days of cricket.”
