Bahamas murder count reaches triple digits .

The murder count in The Bahamas reached triple digits during the weekend of September 16-18, as five violent deaths recorded in the space of 48 hours pushed the count to a staggering 100 for the year so far.

This is the highest number of murders ever recorded in a single year since records have been kept in The Bahamas.

Four murders took place between Friday night and Saturday afternoon in separate incidents.

Another man who was shot Thursday died in hospital on Saturday night, police confirmed.

This time last year the murder count stood at 68, according to The Nassau Guardian’s records. This means that the murder count has increased by 47 percent over this time last year.

Since earlier this year, some analysts predicted that there would be more than 100 murders in 2011. And with just over three months remaining in the year, that prediction will likely be realized. 

While pointing out that it is unfortunate that The Bahamas has recorded a murder count of 100, Minister of National Security Tommy Turnquest said on Sunday that, were it not for certain crime-fighting initiatives the Ingraham administration put in place the situation could have been a lot worse.

During an interview, Turnquest was  asked whether the government was contemplating seeking help from foreign law enforcement agencies. 

“We haven’t at this stage,” he said. “We have a very well trained police force. The problem isn’t the police, in my view. We need to keep the criminals behind bars. That’s the real issue.” 

He pointed to initiatives put in place by the Ingraham administration geared at speeding up the administration of justice and addressing the crime problem.

Turnquest said the electronic monitoring program had a positive impact on crime, as did the government’s decision to provide the police with additional resources, including manpower. But the opposition has accused the Ingraham administration of failing dismally on crime.

At a press conference on Thursday September 15, Progressive Liberal Party leader Perry Christie restated his position that the current administration has not done enough to address the issue of violent crime, especially murder, calling the Ingraham administration’s position on the issue “paralyzed” and “indifferent.” 

“Bahamians understand that crime is a national issue, even if some of their government officials seem to be slow to understand what is happening,” Christie said.