Cops call for calm after Jarrett Lane killings
Published:Monday | July 12, 2021 | 12:09 AMSimone Morgan-Lindo/Gleaner Writer
Head of the Kingston Eastern Police Division, Superintendent Tommie Lee Chambers, and a group of stakeholders will be visiting Jarrett Lane today following the shooting deaths of two men and the injury of three others on Saturday night.
The divisional commander committed to increasing a police presence on the ground until calm is restored.
According to a report from the Constabulary Communications Unit, the Elletson Road police are investigating the killing of 32-year-old Odain Kerr and 35-year-old Marvin Westcarth.
It is reported that about 8:15 p.m., Kerr and Westcarth were among a group of persons when they were attacked in a drive-by.
A trail of blood from the entrance to Jarrett Lane told the horrific story of what transpired on Saturday night.
A resident said that except for Kerr, who died on the spot, the blood-soaked men had run for their lives before collapsing.
“When (Marvin) run pass mi, him say him get shot in him hands, so we never bother pay him too much mind and start attend to the other one who was on the ground. At the time, him never realise seh him get shot all over him body, so we frighten when we hear say him dead,” the resident, who requested anonymity, said.
Saturday’s incident is the latest in a series of flare-ups in recent weeks that have resulted in the deaths of at least six persons and the injury of several others.
Murders in Kingston Eastern have surged by 62 per cent, or from 29 to 47, year-on-year.
Jamaica’s national murder count is five per cent higher in 2021, with 728 deaths up to July 7. Last year, 695 people were murdered over the corresponding period.