Puerto Rico mulls curfew in response to crime wave
May 21st, 2011 - 12:34 pm ICT by IANSSan Juan, May 21 (IANS/EFE) Puerto Rico may need to impose a curfew in the face of an ongoing surge in violent crime, a senior police officer said Friday.
The idea of a curfew is “gaining strength”, according to the police auxiliary superintendent for field operations, Leovigildo Vazquez.
He did not offer any details about the terms and conditions of a curfew.
Puerto Rican lawmakers are looking at all possible options as they weigh whether to take such a drastic step, Vazquez said.
The officer’s comments came a day after news broke of the murder of chef Arturo Pena Giraldo as he was returning home after his shift at the El Puerto del Callao restaurant.
Police said the 45-year-old Peruvian citizen was slain May 10, but provided few other facts about the case, while the victim’s family accuses authorities of having little interest in solving the crime.
Puerto Rico has registered 433 homicides so far this year, 82 more than at the same point in 2010.
Gov. Luis Fortuno’s initiative last year to have the Puerto Rico National Guard to join police in patrolling the streets had a negligible effect on the violence and was abandoned after several months.
–IANS/EFE
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Tags: authorities, callao, citizen, crime wave, drastic step, efe, field operations, homicides, initiative, lawmakers, luis fortuno, negligible effect, police officer, puerto rican, puerto rico national guard, returning home, san juan, superintendent, violence, violent crime