In a bid to curb the wave of insecurity including armed robbery in Monrovia and its environs, the international police force of UNMIL in collaboration with the Liberia National Police (LNP), has taken a series of measures to arrest the situation.

An operation code named "Operation Restore Calm" to Monrovia and its environs was on thursday launched by both UNMIL and the LNP.

The disclosure was made yesterday during UNMIL’s regular Wednesday press briefing by UNMIL’s police commissioner, Col. Mark Kroeker and LNP Director-designate Christian Massaquoi.

To effectuate this operation, Col Kroeker said about 21 local police officers are currently undergoing a three-day training program mainly in the areas of law enforcement, human rights and proper policing.

The police will also be trained in the areas of how to respond to robbery, collecting information on crime, gathering evidence and investigating robberies among, others.

The UNMIL police commissioner said the operation which will be launched at 12:00 p.m. on Friday will include 20 patrol teams with each group comprising trained local police and international police.
He said the group will be deployed in the communities on a daily basis.

Spelling out the a little distinction between the LNP and UNMIL police, Col. Kroeker said his group is not the police of Liberia but rather here to assist, equip, screen and enhance the operations of the LNP.

For his part, Director Massaquoi said several strategies have been adopted to restore law and order in Monrovia and its environs.

He identified New Kru Town, Congo Town, Bushrod Island, Paynesville, Gardnersville and Duala areas as the crime-ridden places in Monrovia and its environs.

Boasting about his confidence in his officers of the LNP, Col. Massaquoi said those selected for this operation are competent and free of any criminal record.

He said they will work to ensure the right of the defenseless are respected. He used the occasion to appeal to the public to report any crime or insecurity in their areas. He assured Liberians that the 911 code will be installed soon.
Col. Massaquoi asked the public to cooperate with the police to restore calm to Monrovia and its environs.