British Indian Ocean Territory Police

British Indian Ocean Territory Police
AbbreviationBIOT Police
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdictionUK
General nature
Operational structure
HeadquartersDiego Garcia, BIOT
Service Polices10
Parent agencyMOD
Website
biot.gov.io/about

The British Indian Ocean Territory Police serve in the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) (situated in the Indian Ocean halfway between Tanzania and Indonesia). BIOT is a territory which does not have a permanent civil population, like some other British Overseas Territories. The population are mostly members of the British Armed Forces and United States Armed Forces.

As such the BIOT police consists of Royal Overseas Police Officers (ROPO), that are all currently members of either the Royal Marines or Royal Navy.[3]

Headquarters of the British Indian Ocean Territory Police, Diego Garcia, 2005.

Organisation

The BIOT police (as of 2015) consists of:[1]

Duties

A ROPO 3 of the Royal Navy Police administers a breathalyzer to a U.S. Navy yeoman stationed on Diego Garcia.[citation needed]

The offences dealt with by BIOT police have included:[4]

  • Road traffic offences (including fixed penalty notices)
  • Sexual offences
  • Offences against the person
  • Drug abuse/misuse
  • Theft/fraud
  • Criminal damage
  • Burglary
  • Public order/drunk and disorderly
  • Illegal fishing activity
  • Fire arms/ammunition
  • MDA/importation
  • Special investigation, e.g. sudden death – a murder occurred in 1988, with the perpetrator sentenced to life imprisonment[5]

Uniform and vehicles

The ROPOs have epaulettes with collar numbers to identify them, similar to UK civilian police uniforms.[6]

The BIOT Police station, Diego Garcia.

United States Navy presence

The United States Navy (USN) has Naval Support Facility at East Point Plantation and entry to it needs a police permit.[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Foreign & Commonwealth Office (October 30, 2015). "FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000 REQUEST REF: 0863-15" (PDF).
  2. ^ a b "MS JOB SPECIFICATION (REVISED MAR 09)" (PDF). October 30, 2015.
  3. ^ Ministry of Defence (April 2, 2012). "Overseas Territories, The Ministry of Defence's Contribution, Directorate-General Security Policy" (PDF).
  4. ^ "FOI 0863-15 Crime Statistics" (PDF). October 30, 2015.
  5. ^ "The King v The Commissioner for the British Indian Ocean Territory" (PDF). Supreme Court of the British Indian Ocean Territory. 5 May 2023. p. 17. BIOT SC/No3/2023 & BIOT SC/No 4/2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  6. ^ "British Indian Ocean Territories Police - a Freedom of Information request to Foreign and Commonwealth Office". WhatDoTheyKnow. August 12, 2017.
  7. ^ "Diego Garcia". MSC. United States Navy. Archived from the original on 22 February 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2013.