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Prof Ramesh Deosaran has warned that crime will severely test the credibility of Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and her new Government, despite a decline in the murder count compared to last year.

“The alarm bells are starting to ring for PM Kamla Persad-Bissessar and her new Government regarding serious crime and murders,” Deosaran said. “While the murder count for this year is about 100 less than last year, it seems that the conditions for murder, home invasions and related serious crimes still exist, bringing rising fear to the population,” he told the Express in a phone interview yesterday.

He acknowledged that it was too early for the Government to deliver concrete anti-crime results but insisted that the administration must show “signs that serious co-ordination and planning among the ‘Big Five’ anti-crime agencies are in action.”