Another child killed in St James, murders at 296
Published:Monday | November 27, 2017 | 12:00 AMAdrian Frater
WESTERN BUREAU:
The killing of yet another child has lifted the spine-chilling murder count in St James to 296 since the start of the year, leaving many residents paralysed with fear as it would appear that the police are powerless to stop the marauding gangsters, who continue their rampage with impunity.
The latest victim is 15-year-old Jahiem Dushard of a Glendevon address. According to residents, he was shot and killed as he slept in his bed. Distraught family members say they are unaware of him being involved in any conflict.
"The area has been quite tense in recent weeks, with a number of shootings. Just last week, a mother and her 11-month-old baby were shot just down the road on Blood Lane," a resident told The Gleaner. "Things are out of control, people are afraid to walk the streets."
Prior to Dushard's death yesterday, there were several shooting incidents on Sunday, which resulted in two deaths. An unidentified man was shot dead on Rough Lane shortly before daybreak; and at approximately 9:30 a.m., Brian 'Bigga' Lewis of a Glendevon address was cornered and executed gangland-style in the bus park in downtown Montego Bay.
According to eyewitnesses, Lewis, who was out on bail after being recently charged with two counts of murder, had no chance of escaping his attackers, as they surrounded him from several directions with guns blazing. After he was killed, one of his attackers reportedly did a quick search of his body, but it is unclear if anything was taken from him.
LIKE A WAR ZONE
On Saturday, an unidentified man was shot dead in Granville; another man was shot dead in the Cambridge community, which has been under siege by members of the Ryan 'Ratty' Peterkin gang; while the body of an unidentified Caucasian woman was found on Long Hill.
On Saturday night, approximately 10:30 p.m., men armed with rifles went on a rampage in St John's, in the Orange community, killing two men and seriously injuring two others. Those killed have been identified as 23-year-old Oshane Reid and 27-year-old Cassell Todd.
"St James was like a war zone over the weekend. As you reach one murder scene, you get call to another murder scene," a policeman told The Gleaner. "We have 296 murders already this year and one more shot don't have to fire for it to get to 300, because we have some 10 or 11 persons battling for life in hospital that could die at any time."
Over the past two weeks, St James has had over 20 murders, which has caused the business community and other critical stakeholders to be crying out for new security measures to stem the bloodletting.
Last year, St James had what was an unprecedented 264 murders. However, despite a series of new policing initiatives and a shake-up in the parish's command structure, the murders continue.