The police in Puerto Rico regularly use excessive force and commit other violations, the US Justice Department says

A report based on a three-year investigation concluded that the Puerto Rico Police Department was a broken force in urgent need of reform. Puerto Rico's governor, Luis Fortuno, said that he agreed with the findings. The US Caribbean island territory is battling a surge in violent crime linked to drug trafficking. The Justice Department investigation was launched after a police officer was filmed shooting an unarmed suspect. It found a pattern of unconstitutional behavior including excessive use of force and illegal searches and arrests. It also said that the Puerto Rican police frequently failed to investigate sex crimes and domestic violence, and often discriminated against immigrants from the Dominican Republic. In July 2011, Fortuno fired the island's police chief in frustration at the force's inability to control crime. The force has also been plagued by corruption. In October 2010, more than 70 officers were arrested on drugs-related charges. Puerto Rico is a major transit point for people smuggling cocaine into the United States from South America. It is also suffering from a wave of violent crime, with nearly 800 murders reported so far in 2011.