HEAD of the constabulary's Corporate Communications Unit (CCU), Senior Superintendent Stephanie Lindsay said criminals felt emboldened to challenge the police on Monday night in West Kingston because they are armed with high-powered weapons.

“...You tend to see, particularly in the Kingston Western [Police] Division, where persons take on the security forces, and I think they do it because they believe that they have the firepower to do it,” said Lindsay.

They have no qualms about firing on the security forces with high-powered weapons [and] if they get the opportunity they will kill members of the security forces, because they feel comforted that somebody will come out and say it is not so,” charged Lindsay.

The CCU boss was providing an update on Monday night's incident in which a police team was reportedly pinned down in the Lizard Town area of Kingston Western.

According to Lindsay, sometime just before 10:00 on Monday night, a police team was conducting a routine patrol in the community and went to a location where it appeared a nine-night was being held.