PHILIPSBURG--This Thursday morning, Minister of Justice Nathalie Tackling will lead an urgent meeting with Prime Minister Luc Mercelina and Préfet Vincent Berton, with attendance of leadership of the Coast Guard and St. Maarten Police Force KPSM, to discuss cross-border actions to stop the spree of crime in the Simpson Bay Lagoon. The minister was made aware of the alarming situation by the St. Maarten Marine Trades Association on Monday.
“Since Monday I have been diligently working with the Chief Prosecutor, the Coast Guard and St Maarten Police Force KPSM to come to a resolution,” Minister Tackling said during the Council of Ministers press briefing on Wednesday morning. “There has since been an increase of Coast Guard patrols in the lagoon in the evening. This is being done in collaboration with the security teams of the marinas such as Port de Plaisance, IGY Simpson Bay Marina and the marina in Cupecoy. The Coast Guard is also doing joint patrols with KPSM for surveillance on both water and land around the lagoon.”
Efforts are being made to work with French counterparts, the minister said. “This is a cross-border issue.”
According to reports, French nationals have been involved in burglarizing yachts moored in the Dutch part of the lagoon, using dinghy’s under the guise of night.
One cruiser shared their experience of recovering stolen items through an unexpected twist of fate. "Before my boat was burglarized, a dinghy was stolen. Fortunately, the owner had hidden an AirTag on board, allowing them to track and locate the dinghy and thief. While the perpetrator escaped, the owner discovered my stolen items inside the recovered dinghy," they recounted.
The Simpson Bay Lagoon is unique in that it is divided between two jurisdictions: the Dutch and the French sides of the island. This division creates significant challenges for law enforcement. Minister Tackling pointed out that there is no treaty in place to allow hot pursuits over water when crossing the border into the French part of the lagoon. However, this week hot pursuits by the Coast Guard have been allowed by the French authorities in some cases.
If perpetrators of French nationality are arrested in the French territory, they will be sent to Guadeloupe for incarceration and prosecuted in Saint Martin. “The French territories do not extradite their citizens to the Dutch side,” Minister Tackling explained. “Over time we have seen that this is an issue for us. People on the French side are well aware that if they commit a crime on the Dutch side, the French government is not going to extradite them to the Dutch side in order for them to be prosecuted here.”
From a legal standpoint, the reality of an island shared by two countries is complex, Tackling said. “We have our unity flag, we like to see ourselves as one, but we are still bound by higher powers and things that have to be regulated overseas. For hot pursuits to be allowed, treaties have to be signed between the governments in Paris and The Hague. This is a reality we have to deal with as an island divided in two.”
Minister Tackling reassured the marine industry and the public that she takes public safety and security very seriously, and that she has made the situation in the lagoon a priority. “I want to show my commitment in acknowledgement of the marine industry, and the impact that it has on our economy. I will continue to support where necessary.”
