ABACO, BAHAMAS — Abaco Chamber of Commerce Director Krista Albury said yesterday she believes a spate of violent crime on the island could be attributed in part to an influx of people seeking jobs on Abaco as the island continues to rebuild, as well as “people’s mental state” nearly two years after Hurricane Dorian.

“We have a constant influx of people into Abaco, not only just tourists but workers looking for work,” she told Eyewitness News.

“The necessity of a police record is not being checked because a lot of these incidents that are happening, it’s coming up saying these people are known to police already.

“So, they’re coming to Abaco because there is [a] ton of work here still, especially in the construction field.

“But because of [a] rapid turnover rate or just how many jobs need to be done, there is not the necessary follow-up to make sure these people are persons who should be allowed to be working on people’s home or have police records that may have some things on it that aren’t really desirable on an island that really isn’t back up to where we need to be.”

Albury said while discussions are being had with authorities, the police have a lack of manpower and other challenges, including the reconstruction of a police station, which was destroyed by Hurricane Dorian in September 2019.

MORE