5 Things to Know About the New Commissioner of Police

Clayton Fernander was sworn in on Tuesday as the country’s 9^th Commissioner of Police, replacing outgoing Commissioner Paul Rolle.

Rolle resigned from the police force with nearly forty years of service and handed the reins to Fernander who was appointed Deputy Commissioner in December 2021 after the Progressive Liberal Party was sworn in as the new government.

Leamond Deleveaux who was sent on leave with Fernander was appointed Deputy Commissioner.

Fernander’s appointment comes at a time when the country is dealing with troubling murder rates which are hitting unprecedented numbers. Seventy-four murders have been recorded so far for the year.

Here’s what to know about Fernander:

1. While serving on the police force, Fernander was known for his connection to the Progressive Liberal Party and may have suffered for it when the Free National Movement was elected in 2017. He and three other officers holding top posts were eventually sent on leave in 2019 which many argue was a political move.
2. Fernander was reappointed when the Progressive Liberal Party became the new government and became Deputy Commissioner.
3. Prime Minister Philip Davis said Fernander is “the right man for the job.”
4. He joined the police force in 1982, serving in traffic and the criminal investigation department, and once headed the Central Detective Unit before his promotion to Assistant Commissioner
5. He was shot multiple times at his home, in an attempted armed robbery in 2013, sustaining injuries to his arm and upper body. “…I can recall and reflect back when I was a victim where I had arrived home and individuals were there waiting for me and held [me] up and robbed me, and [shot me] during that time, so it’s never a good thing look down the barrel of a firearm.”