Clear Hold Build Strategy Showing Results as Crime Trends Downward

Prime Minister Davis joins security leaders for community walkabout while new statistics show major crime falling across The Bahamas

NASSAU, Bahamas – Prime Minister the Hon. Philip Edward Davis KC, MP, today conducted a Clear Hold Build community walkabout through the Southern Shores area of the Carmichael Division, accompanied by Minister Minister the Hon. Keith Bell, Deputy Commissioner of Police A. Anthony Rolle, and officers from the Carmichael Urban Renewal Centre.

The Prime Minister visited approximately seven households across Millar’s Heights, Flamingo Gardens, and Sunset Park, speaking directly with residents about community safety and the impact of the government’s policing and community investment initiatives.

The walkabout concluded with a private lunch with the Charlton family, a multi-generational family rooted in the Southern Shores community.

Speaking to the media before the walkabout, the Prime Minister noted that crime is trending in a positive direction across The Bahamas. Homicides are down 26 percent. Armed robberies have fallen 39 percent and are now 71 percent below their 2022 peak. Housebreakings have been cut nearly in half. Overall major crime has decreased 15 percent nationwide, according to the official statistics of the Royal Bahamas Police Force.

The Prime Minister said he was deeply moved by what he heard from residents during the walkabout. Community members spoke positively about the changes they are experiencing, describing increased police presence in their neighbourhoods, stronger relationships with officers, and a growing sense of safety that many said they had not felt in years.

“These are not just numbers on a page,” the Prime Minister said. “Today I heard directly from mothers and fathers and grandparents in this community that they are seeing and feeling the difference. That is what this work is about.”

The Prime Minister attributed the positive trend to the government’s sustained investment in public safety, including the recruitment of 787 new police officers, the deployment of over a thousand CCTV cameras, the passage of bail reform and anti-gang legislation, and the seizure of 366 illegal firearms in 2025. He also pointed to the expansion of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force with over 260 new marines, new patrol vessels, and enhanced coastal surveillance technology.

The Prime Minister highlighted the government’s 5 Pillars security strategy, which coordinates policing, community investment, youth intervention, border security, and legislative reform. At the centre of this strategy is Clear Hold Build, the policing initiative that combines targeted enforcement with sustained community presence and long-term investment in neighbourhoods.

“When we launched Clear Hold Build, crime was heading in a very different direction,” the Prime Minister said. “We changed the approach. And the results, and what I heard from residents today, tell us it is working.”

The Prime Minister also issued a direct warning to criminals. “We are coming for you. We have more officers, more cameras, more intelligence, and a 65 percent murder clearance rate. Every illegal firearm you carry, we will seize. Every criminal network you build, we will dismantle. The days of operating with impunity in The Bahamas are coming to an end.”

The Prime Minister stressed that the government is not taking a victory lap and acknowledged that more work remains to be done. He said the positive direction in crime must be built upon, not rested upon, and committed to continuing the investment in communities, policing, and opportunity for young people through programmes such as the National Youth Guard, which has graduated over 400 young Bahamians.

“We are finally moving in the right direction,” the Prime Minister said. “Real progress is underway. And we are going to build on it until every Bahamian, in every community, feels safe.”