“2025 is an encouraging year”: crime on the decline in Saint Martin
A Security Staff Meeting was held on Thursday, February 5, at the prefecture to review the security situation in Saint Martin and Saint Barthélemy. The meeting, co-chaired by Prefect Cyrille Le Vély and Attorney General Éric Maurel, provided an opportunity to present to the press an overall positive assessment of the fight against insecurity in the two territories.
The figures show an overall decline in crime of 2.7% in 2025, with 3,974 crimes and offenses recorded compared to 4,084 in 2024. This downward trend applies to all indicators, including assaults, property crimes, and domestic violence. The clearance rate for investigations is also improving, rising from 45% to 54%.
The fight against drug trafficking remains a major priority. In 2025, five drug dealing locations were dismantled and more than 1,600 kilograms of narcotics were seized. The authorities also achieved significant results in the fight against armed violence, with a 30% decrease in armed robberies and twice as many weapons seized as last year.
With regard to violent crime, attempted homicides have fallen by 80%, although the number of homicides has risen slightly (7 compared to 6 in 2024). The Attorney General pointed out that, despite this progress, Saint Martin still faces a very high level of crime, with a rate 8.8 times higher than the national average. Éric Maurel nevertheless welcomed the fact that the situation is under control, thanks to proactive and innovative action by the police and gendarmerie: “Saint Martin has become a real laboratory for security. There are innovations and organizations here that exist nowhere else.”
Decisive operational innovations
To explain these figures, the gendarmerie lieutenant colonel detailed eight major innovations, divided between maintaining public order and the judicial system.
- For public order:
Creation of a brigade in Sandy Ground
Transformation of the motorized brigade into a task force against road violence
Switch to daily operations instead of weekly ones
Establishment of a night shift to reinforce nighttime presence
- For the judiciary:
Convergence between intelligence and the judicial police
Creation of a judicial intelligence support section with the establishment of a fugitive database, which has led to the arrest of 100 people in one year
Upcoming creation of a unit specializing in the search for fugitives
Reorganization of the gendarmerie to combat organized crime groups, with advanced technological tools
For the prefect, security is a key issue for the future of the region, whose economy relies heavily on tourism. “The fight against drug trafficking will remain a top priority in 2026,” with enhanced technical resources, video surveillance, cross-border cooperation, and increased security at ports and airports. The authorities emphasized that these encouraging results must be part of a collective responsibility involving the state, local authorities, families, and all stakeholders in the region.
BY CYRILE POCREAU
