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Compol Chester made it clear that his department isn't going to tolerate any kind of lawlessness or threats public safety:

Chester Williams Commissioner of Police
"Yes, these are things that just came up, it's not long-standing issues, things that just emanated and swiftly resulted in the two shootings. And may I say that from a policing standpoint, we are addressing the issue. We're looking at it, and let me say on the record, that gang members are not going to be allowed to have their way in this City. And so, what needs to be done to address the issue will be done."

"CYDP has been doing an exceptional job of trying to see how they can diffuse tensions between these different factions. CYDP is the proper authority to address their issues, not the police. And so, I am not going to go into any sit-down and any dialog with them. They have asked for me to speak with them, and I have said, point-blank, I'm not going to meet with them."

"They will not, and cannot be allowed to take us back to February, early March, with the senseless shootings. In one of the incidents over the weekend, a female who had a child in her hand was shot. That child could have been hit by the bullet, and so, we're seeing the recklessness of some of these monsters, and we have to do what needs to be done, to address it. And it will be done swiftly."

"We are also taking into consideration the amount of robberies that have been committed by gang members and there are also a number of business establishments who have been extorted by gang members, so in some cases these business feel extremely threatened because of the degree of fear that is being put in them by these gang members who are extorting them. These are activities that we cannot continue to happen. People must be allowed to feel safe, whether the business man or the ordinary Belizean people. We must be allowed to feel safe in our country."

And that's why the Regional Commander for Eastern Division is asking for patience from Belize City residents. Police intend to increase their presence in the streets with checkpoints, stop-and-search operations, and more mobile and foot patrols. It is a direct response from the cops to stem any kind of spike in crime before it happens. Here's what Assistant Police Commissioner Alden Dawson had to say about the police operations for the City that you'll definitely notice in the days to come:

ACP Alden Dawson, Regional Commander, Eastern Division
"We know that since the announcement of the lifting of the SOE on July first, we were expecting some increase in activity across the city. Since then we had put in place several measures to deal with these criminal elements and prevent them from moving easily or committing offence within the division. We have had several operations into the weekend, but unfortunately even with that operation we had two murders. We have since stepped up our efforts and you will see an increase in police activity through this week and into the week, with the same aim to curb these situations. I ask the public to bear patience and cooperate with the police. We will be putting on additional pressure especially where loitering and public drinking are concerned to keep the streets clear of these criminals and their activities."

Reporter
"Is the random stop and search one of the tools that you guys will be using, because I know that was very effective."

ACP Alden Dawson
"Yes, that is one of our strategy. We are asking the police to go back to these stop and search to increase. I know some of them still had the fear of this Covid situation, but we are trying our best to get that out of their mind and we will increase back the stop and search which use to assist us a lot."