The mayor of Chomutov has announced that after a half a year of activity, the town’s local militia has not measured up. Former municipal police officer Petr Kubaczka established the militia this past summer to great media fanfare after his daughter was assaulted in a park there.
Members of the association sometimes walk the streets of Chomutov wearing reflective vests reading "Stop racism, crime and disorder", but the town hall says they are not fulfilling their function. Deputy Mayor Jan Řehák said the group has not once called the municipal police about a specific case.
According to data reported by news server iDNES.cz, the town is getting much more benefit out of its 18 crime prevention assistants. During the last five months alone they have reportedly addressed 6 000 petty cases and handed hundreds of them over to the municipal police.
Representatives of the militia say the town hall was never interested in them from the start. The group currently has 12 members, but Kubaczka wants to expand their ranks. Their patrols sometimes include dogs, but Kubaczka says this is mainly for the members’ own protection should anyone want to attack them.
