Police are not monitoring CCTV cameras as they said they would, according to Hamilton Mayor Jay Bluck.

Mr. Bluck has also expressed concern that a set of cameras on Court Street is still not up and running, despite an original target date of January.

However the Police strongly refuted his remarks last night. They accused the Mayor of not communicating with them and said they did not wish to engage in ?a media war?. They also stated that the Court Street cameras would be up and running by the end of this week.

Last October, then-Police Commissioner Jonathan Smith and Labour and Home Affairs Minister Randy Horton announced a $300,000 venture to extend coverage to both Court Street and Pitts Bay Road. Journalists were taken to the ?Com Ops? (Combined Operations) room at Police headquarters where officers demonstrated how they would use the cameras to pick up ongoing incidents and dispatch officers to deal with them.

Mr. Horton said at the time: ?The installation of these CCTV cameras will efficiently enhance the ability of the Bermuda Police Service to keep a 24-hour surveillance on these areas.?

However, according to Mr. Bluck, manpower issues have prevented the Police having an officer monitoring the cameras as had been envisioned.

?It?s not been funded and the cameras have not been monitored as they should be. We?ve known this for a long time,? he said yesterday. ?They film 24 hours but there?s not someone there.?

Mr. Bluck said he found this situation ?disturbing.? He added that he understood the camera installation on Court Street was unfinished owing to issues over the necessary trenches being dug.

Takbir Sharrieff from campaign group Bermudians Against Narcotics was at the October launch. He said yesterday: ?For such a serious problem as drugs and the shootings that took place on Court Street, you would have thought the cameras would be a number one priority.?.

He said it was his ?informed opinion? from ?reliable sources? that what he called ?the administration? wished to keep criminals in Court Street rather than have them in tourist areas such as Front Street.

?That?s the mentality at the very top. That?s taken place in meetings,? he claimed. ?I think they are intentionally dragging their feet on Court Street and ?Back of Town.? They don?t know what to do if criminals leave those areas.?

Mr. Sharrieff declined to elaborate upon his comments, but said: ?I?m going to eventually start naming names.? Of Mr. Bluck?s claim that there is no officer monitoring the existing CCTV cameras, he said: ?It was my understanding that the cameras would be monitored on a 24-hour basis. If they are not it is deceiving the public and not giving the public what they paid for.?

Responding to the claims, Police spokesman Dwayne Caines said last night: ?The manning of CCTV has not changed since its inception. It is always monitored as it is located in ?Com Ops? which is fully maintained by a ?watch? working 24 hours a day. Whilst there is not a dedicated officer monitoring CCTV 24 hours exclusively, officers do monitor the system as a part of their duties whilst on the watch.? He said of Mr. Bluck?s remarks: ?It has been the position of the Bermuda Police Service that an open door policy is best ... if the Mayor wishes to have an audience with the Commissioner he is welcome to do so, but we will not engage the Mayor in a media war. It is ironic that the Mayor has not touched base with the Commissioner as it relates to CCTV and the associated deadlines. CCTV on Court Street is in its advanced stages and it should be up and running by the end of the week. The Mayor would be fully aware of the challenges of implementing this project. There were many service providers who were charged with providing specific services for this project. We have been assured by the service providers that the project will be completed by the 18th of the month. This information was discussed at a meeting with the Commissioner and the relevant agencies this morning. If the Mayor would have made himself available for the meeting, he also would have been privy to the information.?

Minister Randolph Horton was said to be off-Island yesterday and could not be reached for comment.