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Police will not be rushed; still holding off identifying body

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Providenciales, 20 Apr 2015 – Despite Magnetic Media online reports, Police did not confirm that the remains found in the Breezy Brae area last Thursday are those of Kevino Smith. Magnetic Media apologizes for this misinformation. Lead investigator, Rodney Adams, acting Deputy Commissioner of Police:

“We will not be rushing into anything; we will not be rushing this investigation. As the old saying goes, we want to make sure every ‘T’ is crossed and every ‘I’ is dotted. We believe we not only owe it to the family, but to all residents of Grand Turk to ensure that if the remains are in fact those of Mr. Smith, we owe it to the family and residents as well, to bring about closure as to what actually occurred of how he came to his death.”

Given gold commander status and special strategic oversight of the case, acting Deputy Commissioner of Police, Rodney Adams told media and family at a press conference in Grand Turk on Friday that there were problems with the investigation before he was given charge of it; this included the way searches was conducted.

“We have examined all that has been done up until that time and the decision was taken to visit that area and do a systematic search. I have heard about members of the public searching that area, our officers have indicated searching the Breezy Brae area as well. However, based on my experience as an investigator with strategic oversight, there were certain things I was not satisfied with hence the assistant Senior Investigator Officer and other members of the team and I discussed it and the decision was taken that we should go back and search the area properly, hence the result we came up with yesterday.”

Adams and his investigative team denied that their efforts were or are slow and declined to detail the condition of the body, whether there were other articles found with the body and even whether the body was buried or above ground. Smith is the only missing person report on the island of Grand Turk and while there was no outright admission that the body found was that of Kevino, there are some who did speak, at that press conference, as if it is indeed the 25 year old man who has not been seen since March 4th, 2015 is deceased; including an officer on the case:

Superintendent Darron Williams: “We know for a fact that there are a lot of speculations in respect to the demise of Mr. Smith, or his disappearance. To this date, as Mr. Adams said we cannot confirm this as yet until we do our further checks to ensure that we are on the right track.”

Pastor Chad Archibold: “Bay and Patty wants to know what happened to their son, they would like to be able to at least bury him in peace, and the committee as a whole would like to fully understand what was the incident that came about in his demise. I know the Deputy Commissioner has pointed to us out very carefully that the Police still has to do what is proper and properly identified the remains to be sure that they have followed all legal protocols, so we must be patient and supportive as they go through this process.”

Pastor Chad Archibold of Salem Baptist Church represented the family with other relatives at the press conference. At least one relative, used the opportunity to level questions at DCP Adams and others… as a result, we learned that the Crime Stoppers Reward offer came once DCP Adams took over the case; the amount is $2,000 but can be augmented by donations. In the debriefing, the public heard that Kevino Smith was originally reported for an incident at a residence in Breezy Brae on March 4th… then on Friday March 6th, he was reported missing by relatives.

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RTCIPF Observes World Down Syndrome Day

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On March 21st, 2024, the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force joined the international, regional and local communities in observing World Down Syndrome Day. 

Officers showed their support by wearing brightly coloured and mismatched socks to raise awareness. 

The head of the Safeguarding and Public Protection Unit, Assistant Superintendent of Police Grantley Williams, Training Manager Mrs Odessa Forbes and Media Relations Officer Denyse Renne visited the SNAP Centre and interacted with the students.

In a message to the TCI community, the RTCIPF noted that stereotypes perpetuate stigma and hinder inclusion, preventing individuals from reaching their full potential. 

Instead, the RTCIPF calls for individuals to foster an environment of acceptance and support where everyone is valued for who they are. 

By breaking down barriers and challenging misconceptions, we can create a more inclusive society where individuals with Down Syndrome are empowered to live fulfilling lives and contribute meaningfully to their communities and, by extension, the TCI. 

As law enforcement officers, we must protect and serve all members of society, regardless of their abilities. 

Let’s work together to ensure that individuals with Down Syndrome are treated with dignity and respect and that their rights are upheld.

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CARICOM speaks out on Climate Change, looking to May meeting to amplify call for Climate Funding

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March 3, 2024

 

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) remains on the frontlines of global climate crisis, an issue the Region has been aggressively advocating on for the past thirty years. Despite the many commitments and promises of international partners, the window of opportunity to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels is rapidly closing.

Heads of Government are concerned that while COP 28 was widely regarded as a historic event, with the completion of the first global stocktake (GST), on progress in achievement of the Paris Agreement goals, the outcomes of GST show that emissions of greenhouse gases continue to rise and the nationally determined contributions (NDCs) of Parties will not keep global temperatures below the 1.5 degree goal enshrined in the Paris Agreement.

Heads of Government also expressed concern to be heading to COP 29 where a New Finance Goal will be articulated to replace the 100bn goal, which has not yet been met, even as developing countries require trillions to deal with the escalating impacts of climate change. Developed country parties have not provided enough finance at scale, technology and capacity building support required to help developing countries tackle their pressing needs to build their resilience, especially in adapting to the adverse and increasingly catastrophic impacts of climate change. The clear absence of definitive timelines for action and quantitative commitments for scaling up of investments, and particularly adaptation finance emerging out of COP 28, cause great concern to our Region.

The Conference noted that Small Island Developing States (SIDS), recognized as the most vulnerable group of countries and a special case for sustainable development, have been facing strong push back against the recognition of their special circumstances especially in the context of climate finance. There is limited international support for special allocations for SIDS within financing arrangements and available climate finance from international and private sources is limited, expensive and too onerous to access.

In light of the preceding, Heads of Government called for CARICOM to take a strategic, unified and coordinated approach to ensure that the Region remains influential in the climate and development arena through engagements with key partners and advocacy groups.

They called for renewed focus by the Region to advocate for inclusion of forests, nature-based solutions and blue carbon into market mechanisms with the aim of articulating clear regional positions and strategies.

Heads of Government reiterated the call for improved readiness programmes, simplified approval procedures, a change to the criteria for determining access to low-cost finance, and for the adoption of programmatic approaches to address the bottlenecks in accessing finance.

The Region reiterates its support for the Bridgetown Initiative’s call to expand capital adequacy of international financial institutions.

Heads recognized that the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States, scheduled to be held in Antigua and Barbuda, 27 – 30 May 2024, will be an inflection point for many of these discussions to be articulated. As such, the Region remains committed to participating in the Conference at the highest level.

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South Caicos Development Plans shared with Washington-Misick led Administration

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On Monday, 12 February 2024, the Premier led a delegation to tour the island of South Caicos to view the ongoing public and private sector projects, involving the remodelling and rebranding of the airport terminals, historical districts, and the East Bay Hotel.

The tour of the various developments reinforced the Government’s commitment to collaborating with stakeholders to boost the island’s activity and economy.

Photos courtesy of the TCI Office of the Premier

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