Lieutenant Colonel Hugues Loyez. Robert Luckock photo.
MARIGOT--On meeting Lieutenant Colonel Hugues Loyez, the new Commandant of the Gendarmerie of St. Martin and Saint Barthélemey, one is struck by two things: his youthfulness for such an important assignment (he’s 36), and his good command of English, better than that of his predecessors.
He officially started in St. Martin on August 1 but benefited from a one-month induction period in July with his predecessor, Colonel Maxime Wintzer-Wehekind, to make the relevant contacts and discover the lay of the land. This is his first time in St. Martin and the heads-up about the island and culture enabled him to hit the ground running.
One should not mistake young age for lack of experience; it is quite the opposite. Evidently a very bright student, Loyez graduated from two of the most prestigious French military establishments, Saint-Cyr Military Academy in Brittany (the French equivalent of Sandhurst in the UK or West Point in the USA) and École de Guerre (College of Warfare) in Paris which trains military personnel in the armed forces for the highest ranks, such as generals or admirals.
He shunned the traditional route of going to university after high school, opting at 20 years old to take the demanding exams to enter Saint-Cyr Military Academy which he described as “very intense.”
Of the hundreds of students who take the exams for Saint-Cyr or the War College, a very small percentage pass, 30 students passing out of 200 is the average.
“I have always wanted to test myself, to take on the hardest challenges,” he said. His office is adorned with ornaments, gifts or medals from his various postings, including in a glass cabinet the military hat with red and white plumes called a “shako”, for graduating from Saint-Cyr.
Following a basic officer training course he joined the elite Groupe d’Intervention de la Gendarmerie Nationale (GIGN) and has had postings not only in France but also in French Polynesia.
GIGN is a tactical unit whose missions include counterterrorism, riot control, hostage rescue, arrest of crime kingpins and so forth. GIGN military wear black uniforms. GIGN has a branch in Guadeloupe and the unit is sometimes called on to assist in St. Martin.
“One of my postings was responsible for riot control and the second one was a special operation to arrest armed drug dealers in Tahiti and the third posting was in France dealing with armed robberies, rape and other crimes.
“The mix of those three postings has prepared me well for St. Martin. In fact, I met some GIGN officers who had served in St. Martin about eight years ago and they told me what it was like here. So I knew it was going to be a challenging posting.”
Married and father to two young daughters, Loyez was born in Paris. His father was a Gendarme and he grew up initially in a Gendarmerie barracks, exposed on a constant basis to the life of a Gendarme.
“I never had any doubt I would become a Gendarme. I think it’s the best job in the world because you are paid to help and protect people. I’m also very happy because it’s the first time my job has an international connection with the Dutch side.
“This helps to improve my English and enhance the already-efficient cooperation between the two law enforcement agencies. I have met the bosses of KPSM [St. Maarten Police Force – Ed.], the head of the Dutch marines and the head of the Royal Marechaussee.”
Instant communication and exchange of information on crime or other events is facilitated by a WhatsApp thread between KPSM Dispatch and the Gendarmerie’s operational control centre, in addition to emergency phone number 17 on the French side, and 911 on the Dutch side that the public use.
Another WhatsApp group created a month ago links the four top heads of KPSM and the top four heads of the Gendarmerie to discuss very important, sensitive topics.
Loyez was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in January of this year. He was offered a senior administrative posting at the Paris headquarters of the National Gendarmerie, but declined it.
“All of my successful postings to date have been operational. I like to be active, on the ground and fully involved. So when St. Martin was offered to me, I was very pleased. I do have the possibility to go far in my career, but my priority has always been to get the most interesting postings, to take on difficult missions,” he said.
He is in charge of 200 Gendarmes in St. Martin, including a small brigade of 30 Gendarmes in St. Barths, 15 of whom rotate every three months. He is satisfied St. Martin has enough Gendarmes. In metropolitan France the ratio of Gendarmes to the population is one per 1,000 citizens, and in St. Martin it is four Gendarmes per 1,000 persons.
Asked what his approach is towards young St. Martiners, many of whom regard Gendarmes as the enemy, he replies, “The objective is to establish trust, transparency, and proximity, the latter meaning engaging with young people in a way that they don’t feel that they are about to be arrested."
This works well in Sandy Ground with the recent posting of six specialised Gendarmes who blend in with the youth and parents. They don’t wear uniforms but white T-shirts with “Proximité” on the back.
“Very shortly I will be creating Facebook and Instagram pages to explain to the youth why the Gendarmerie is carrying out certain actions, to be more open with information. I have also created a hashtag ‘Keep SXM Friendly’.”
Meanwhile, solving car thefts and armed robberies is an on-going challenge for investigators. 2024 has seen a dramatic 50% rise in armed robberies compared to last year. This worrying development has been discussed with Préfet Vincent Berton and Dutch-side Prime Minister Dr. Luc Mercelina.
The préfet is also cracking down on bad behaviour on the roads due to alcohol or drug use, and young people not wearing helmets. This year has seen a significant spike in serious injuries compared to last year. There have been four fatalities on the roads and five last year. This has placed the onus on Loyez to increase controls, seek out weapons and punish offenders while at the same time working on safety awareness and communication campaigns.
