Vendor killed days before Christmas birthday

This Christmas Day will be painful for Sandra Scott as she will still be grappling with the death of her cousin, Leon ‘Furry’ English, who was shot dead along with his girlfriend in Commodore district in Linstead, St Catherine, on Thursday morning.

English, who would have celebrated his birthday on December 25, was a vendor in the Linstead Square, selling drinks and snacks from his handcart.

After wrapping up business early Thursday morning, English chartered a taxi to take him home.

According to police reports, he was unloading his goods from the vehicle at approximately 1:45 a.m. when armed men pounced upon them.

English received multiple gunshot wounds to the upper body and was found dead, lying on his back, by the police.

A woman, who has been identified as English’s girlfriend and who had been travelling in the vehicle with the two men, was also found dead, lying on her stomach with what appeared to be gunshot wounds to her abdomen and upper left arm.

The taxi driver, who was shot in the left buttock and upper left section of the back, managed to drive himself to the Linstead Hospital, where he was treated and transferred to another medical facility.

He is said to be in stable condition.

On Thursday, Scott told The Gleaner that she was still at a loss for words, hours after the tragedy.

She explained that she shared a very close relationship with English and loved her cousin dearly.

Heartbroken by the tragedy and that English has not lived to celebrate his birthday, Scott revealed that she received the dreadful news some time after 4 a.m. before leaving home for work.

“I can’t believe up until now,” she said.

She said that his brutal and sudden demise has shaken her to the core, adding that she has been trying not think of the incident and the road ahead, noting that every year, she and English would spend Christmas Day together while he sold goods in the town square.

“Year to year, we always in the street ... . When I go in the street, I always stand with him [and] we enjoy weself,” she said.

“He is so nice. I can’t begin to tell you how nice,” she added.

English, who is survived by his son, was well-known in the community as he was a contestant in numerous stagings of the Wray & Nephew Contender boxing series. He trained at the G.C. Foster College of Physical Education and Sport’s gym for the competition.

A neighbour remembered English as a hard worker.

“Me know him as a good man in the area still. Him just come in a night time and go back out a morning time,” he said.

The neighbour added that English was very driven and humble and that he was working towards earning enough funds to complete his house.

“Just when the man a build up him foundation, them kill him. Me cyah believe it,” he added.

asha.wilks@gleanerjm.com