New York Police Department (NYPD) Deputy Commissioner, Tarik Sheppard, has praised the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) for its effective measures in fighting crime.

Sheppard’s visit and endorsement come just days after the United States issued a damning travel advisory for Jamaica, urging its Americans to reconsider travelling to the island due to increased violence and limited medical access.

Speaking with journalists at a recent event, the NYPD deputy commissioner labelled the JCF as proficient.

“I think the key for us is to continue to share information because we have such a connection between Jamaica and our population popping up in New York being so diverse, but in no way do I see any reason why we need to sort of assist with strategy here because I think this police force has shown to be more than adept and proficient at what they do,” Sheppard underscored.

“They take the approach of being aggressive towards gangs and towards organised crime in the same way we do,” he added.

His comments were welcomed by Police Commissioner Antony Anderson, who highlighted efforts made by the local police force to target criminal gangs.

“We now have five gangs in front of the courts, and we have a few more lined up to follow that. So we’re very aggressive in how we approach that side of things,” said Anderson.

He said that the JCF is engaged with community members who often assist with criminal investigations.

“We’re also very engaged with communities; we’re about a third of the size of the NYPD, I believe. So, we’re reasonably large for us. But then we have the full national responsibility for policing matters,” Anderson said as he compared the resources of the NYPD and the JCF.

In response to the travel advisory, Anderson said he found the news shocking.

“Our numbers are going down. So, we found it a little surprising that all of this [the recent negative US State Department Travel Advisory] was coming out now,” he shared.

However, in a recent press release, the United States Embassy in Jamaica said the travel advisory level in Jamaica has been unchanged since 2022. It added that the only difference this time around is more detailed analysis of medical access and denied that it was “timed with any other issue”.