Pickpocket's Paradise

There was a time when you stood a fifty per cent chance of being picked in Kingston. Thieves abounded, some very young and some oldsters. I was in a taxi in April 2015 and the driver was relating to us about pickpockets. He said that they used to come out in droves especially on a Friday. They usually had a leader. He also said that some of them were trained in the art of picking people’s pockets. Some of them would be dressed in khaki uniform. They were also numerous at Christmas time. I always could spot pickpockets dressed as school boys because they always looked tougher than the normal school boy. I was picked at least three times, twice on a bus and once in Downtown, Kingston. The first time was on Red Hills Road. I actually laywaited the bus and found the pickpocket. The police searched him but didn’t find anything on him. One night during the Christmas season I took a bus in Cross Roads. I had my money in my jeans pocket but the pockets were below my knees. We were in one of those minibuses. During the journey Downtown, I saw a guy staring at me the whole time and I got really annoyed. When I got to Parade I realised that I had been cleaned out. The guy had been sending me a warning. Subsequently, I tried to send people messages by staring them down especially if I’m on a bus and somebody is trying to pick them. Once I took a bus at Cross Road, a guy came on the bus and put his hand in my pocket. I took it out and he didn’t try anything although I knew that these guys always walked with a knife. After that I kept my wallet in my travelling bag. With the advent of these new buses I know that it has been reduced if not totally eradicated although the buses can be crowded sometimes. I think that it may be due to the fact that the buses have cameras on them and also most persons walk with a camer1. A quizz: A football team has played ten (10) matches for a total of sixteen (16) points. Three (3) points is for a win, one (1) point for a draw and zero (0) points for a loss. What is its win/draw/ loss record for the season so far?

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