Update: Sudden Death Incident at Gibbs Hill Lighthouse

Tuesday, January 14,2025

Assistant Commissioner of Police (Operations), Martin Weekes – “The Bermuda Police Service (BPS) can confirm that the incident BPS officers responded to around 12:15pm Tuesday, 14th January 2025 at Gibbs Hill Lighthouse in Southampton, involved the sudden death of a 36-year-old man. The scene has been processed and was re-opened around 3:15pm Tuesday. Inquiries are ongoing regarding the circumstances of this sudden death. Any witnesses or members of the public with relevant information are encouraged to contact Constable John Outerbridge by calling 211, or e-mailing jrouterbridge@bps.bm, at the earliest opportunity.” Initial Statement: Around 12:15pm Tuesday, 14th January 2025, police officers responded to a reported incident at Gibbs Hill Lighthouse in Southampton. The scene has been cordoned off, while inquiries are underway. An update will be provided in due course.

Witness Appeal: Alleged Hit & Run Involving a Car & Teen Male Student

Monday, January 13,2025

Inquiries are underway regarding an alleged hit and run, involving a car and a teen male student walking in Devonshire Monday morning, 13th January 2025. Details remain very limited at this time, as the Bermuda Police Service (BPS) was made aware of this alleged incident several hours after it apparently occurred. It is believed that a car, understood to be driven by a woman, came into contact with the teen pedestrian, said to be a 13-year-old male, somewhere in the Hermitage Road, Middle Road Devonshire area, just before or just after 8am Monday. It appears that the student had gotten off a public bus in the area, just prior to the alleged incident. Reportedly, the female driver stopped to check on the teen, before continuing on. At last check the 13-year-old’s mother had taken him to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital for medical assessment. So far, there is no indication that the young man was seriously hurt. Any witnesses, as well as the driver of the car involved, are asked to call Constable Oba Swan on 211, or e-mail oswan@bps.bm, at the earliest opportunity. Alternatively, members of the public with relevant information are encouraged to share it with a police officer they know, or provide it through the BPS online community reporting portal, https://portal.police.bm/.

First Fatal Collision of 2025

Saturday, January 11,2025

The Bermuda Police Service can confirm the 18-year- old female motorcycle rider injured in a serious road traffic collision on Friday, January 10, 2025, has sadly, succumbed to her injuries. The incident occurred near the junction of Middle Road and Manse Road, Paget around 2:30 pm. The investigation into this matter continues and anyone with information is asked to contact Police Constable, Deforest Evans on 717-0860 or, via e-mail at, devans@bps.bm. You may also call the Roads Policing Unit on 247-1788. No further information will be provided at this time.

2022 Crime Statistics

Friday, January 10,2025

The Bermuda Police Service (BPS) 2022 Crime Statistics are now available to the public. The figures show there were 2,902 offences in 2022 as compared with 3,165 offences in 2021. That reflects a decrease of 263 or 8.3%, year over year. Of note, this also represents the fourth consecutive yearly decrease from a high of 3,694 offences back in 2018. That notwithstanding, crimes against the person were up in 2022. Conversely, there was a decrease in crimes against property. Also reflecting decreases were crimes against the community and offences of anti-social behaviour. However, this was due in the main to the existence of COVID regulations. The 2022 crime figures reveal there were 9 murders that year. Five of these unfortunate incidents were firearms related, three of them involved the use of bladed articles. One person died following a physical assault. Crimes against the person increased from 579 in 2021 to 693 in 2022. In 2022, there were 11 road traffic fatalities, while 132 people were seriously injured in road traffic collisions. The vast majority of traffic collisions on our roads are due to impaired driving and speed. While the BPS is working assiduously to address the incidence of road traffic collisions, as evidenced by the 9,233 traffic tickets issued in 2022, the public must do its part by exercising greater caution when operating a vehicle and not engaging in driving whilst impaired. Addressing the 2022 crime statistics, Darrin Simons, Commissioner of Police stated, “While there have been increases in some categories, the fact remains that overall, crime was down in 2022. Admittedly, COVID regulations would have had an influence on the figures.” “However, despite the challenges highlighted here, your Bermuda Police Service continues its efforts, unabated, to maintain this downward trend. We may not get it right all the time, but we seek to ensure that we do get it right the majority of the time.” “What will aid in making that effort successful is your continued support. We thank the public for continuing to hold us accountable, as we perform our duties in meeting our mandate of making Bermuda safer.” “As I have often said, the community is the police and the police is the community. It is through this partnership that we will continue to ensure Bermuda’s reputation as a safe jurisdiction.” The BPS 2022 Crime Statistics can now be viewed here.

Renewed Fraud Advisory: Beware of Calls From Fake Bank Representatives

Thursday, January 09,2025

The Bermuda Police Service (BPS) continues to receive reports regarding fraudulent activity targeting local businesses as well as members of the public, where individuals posing as representatives of local banks are contacting customers and falsely claiming that fraudulent activity has been detected on their accounts. The fraudsters then request login credentials to correct the problem. However, once they gain access to the accounts, they quickly transfer the funds in those accounts to overseas locations. The BPS once again urges residents to remain vigilant and note the following to protect against falling victim to these types of scams: Bank representatives will never ask you over the phone for your personal account login credentials. If you are uncertain about the legitimacy of a call, hang up immediately and contact your bank directly by phone or in person. Do not download or install any third-party software at the request of someone claiming to be a bank representative. If you receive an email claiming to be from your bank, you should check the email header to see if it matches the details of legitimate emails you've received from your bank before. Please have this discussion with any seniors you are related to or are friendly with as they are often particularly targeted by these criminals.