Hameed: Public trust in police service has improved

Commissioner of Police Mohamed Hameed, on Sunday, said that public trust in Maldives Police Service was of paramount importance, and that the institution, over the past one-year-period, had run several initiatives which had been successful in improving public trust.

He made the remark in his address in commemoration of the 87th anniversary of Maldives Police Service.

Hameed said that increasing public trust was important not just for national morale, but also for policing itself.

He said that the rate of crime reports had increased by 9.73 percent over the past one-year period, but that the police case clearance rate had improved even more, despite this increase in caseload.

“Even with the increase in number of reported crimes, the number of cases sent for prosecution increased by 22.8 percent. This is a major stride in the road to justice,” said Hameed.

He also highlighted on crimes which Maldives Police Service had been successful in preventing over the past year; including the seizure of 426 kilos of drugs in 135 operations.

Hameed also noted serious cases of sexual offenses against children which had shocked the nation over the past one-year period.

He provided assurance that the Maldives Police Service continued to take immediate action to prevent sexual offenses and cases of domestic violence, and had established short-term and long-term measures to provide an effective response to such crimes.

Hameed announced plans to expand the services of neighborhood support officers to six more atolls, once the police’s current work in the frontlines of the COVID-19 crisis ended.

Highlighting on the police strategic action plan, Hameed said he planned on prioritizing and rolling out 15 of the 73 projects this year.