300 Agricultural Wardens Over Next Three Years

Three hundred agricultural wardens are to be trained over the next three years to combat praedial larceny and other agricultural crimes, says Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green.

“These wardens are police officers who will be tasked to treat with agricultural crimes, and they will be deployed in praedial larceny hotspots,” he said.

Minister Green, who was speaking to journalists following a recent tour of the Frome Sugar Factory in Westmoreland, said that the recruitment of officers has already begun and training is slated to commence this quarter.

The idea is to roll out 100 wardens annually over the three years, he noted.

“What you will see this year is more boots on the ground in our agricultural wardens programme, [and] we should see the deployment of our first set of agricultural wardens this year,” he said.

Minister Green said that a critical area of focus for the wardens will be targeting stolen livestock and addressing irregularities in butcheries, where organised crime has taken root.

The wardens will the tasked to clean up markets that may be complicit in the sale of stolen livestock, he noted.

Minister Green said that the wardens programme is part of a broader collaboration with the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) to establish a specialised division to tackle agricultural crimes.

Such a division, he noted, would not only oversee the deployment of personnel but also work closely with farmers to implement strategies aimed at safeguarding their livelihood.

“We are also going to set up farmers’ watch groups and bring in technologies to help the farmers keep their areas safe. We are taking praedial larceny very seriously,” he said.

Penalties for agricultural theft have been significantly increased, with maximum fines moving from $250,000 to $3 million, and prison sentences extended from six months to three years.