Dear Editor,
I am heartened to learn that after years of advocating the powers that be have seen it fit to establish a criminal intelligence unit. It must be emphasized however that if such a unit is not properly structured to cater for the criminal culture that exists in Guyana and the information gathered is not properly processed into strategic, tactical intelligence, this unit will after a short period become ineffective like the current police special branch.
An intelligence unit should have three essentials.
1. Files containing information arranged in a manner that lends itself to rapid and effective analysis.
2. A formal permanent arrangement for flow of raw information to reach the unit from whatever sources can be tapped: unit investigators, technical collection devices other reporting elements of the agency and other agencies, public and official records, repositories and private data collections where possible and legally defensible.
3. One or more staff members(s) should be capable of developing from the file records and the incoming raw information, patterns, networks, connections, and new areas of organised or other criminal penetration. The agency’s first priority is setting up of functional files on businesses, city sectors, travel patterns of known characters, and cross referencing to existing biographic files.
It is also important that processed intelligence is properly managed by the police administration. They must not expect intelligence support on such matters to flow up to them automatically. They must make clear what their needs are to their intelligence unit and how and in what format they expect to receive the finished intelligence product.
Yours faithfully,
Robert Gates
