‘Small’ police team will be well equipped: Baki

THE “small’ police team retained to pursue the prisoners who escaped from the Bomana maximum security unit last month will be equipped with new vehicles and communications equipment.
Police Commissioner Gari Baki said four new vehicles will be bought from the money allocated by the National Government to go after and recapture the escapees, including alleged bank robbery mastermind, William Kapris.
Three vehicles will be for the 22-man unit set up for the recapture operation, while a fourth vehicle will be given to the NCD Major Organised Criminal Investigation Team (MOCIT).
Mr Baki also allocated K100,000 for the purchase of communications equipment for the 22-man unit.
“As Commissioner, I will continue to support my policemen and expect them to concentrate on catching the prison escapees. There is simply no excuse for non-performance,” Mr Baki said in a statement.
He said K180,000 was paid to a vehicle hire company for vehicles engaged in the special operations.
He said he cut back the men involved in the operations from 500 to 22 so the “small team” was now fully resourced, highly versatile and mobile.
He said the K1.5 million allocated by the Government was not specifically for the NCD Police Command.
He said Kapris and the escapees were not confining their criminal activities to one locale, and they could be anywhere in the country. He said this was why he had set up the national crime coordination centre at police headquarters.