UPDATE | Two arrested for Hanover double murder, Chang warns against reprisals

Two men have been arrested in a major breakthrough into a probe in the recent double murder in Crabwood Lane in Hopewell, Hanover. 

Assistant Commissioner of Police Clifford Chambers, the police commander for Area One, gave the update on Saturday while touring several violence-plagued communities in western Jamaica with National Security Minister, Dr. Horace Chang.

Chambers said the violence is being driven by a feud among gangsters involved in the illicit lottery scam.

In the double murder, a businesswoman, whose establishment was invaded by armed gangsters, and a student, who was travelling by the location in a passing motor car, were shot and killed in what many said was an unprovoked attack.

And on Friday afternoon, an elderly construction worker was gunned down at a work site in the community. 

A woman who was nearby has been hospitalised with gunshot injuries.

Chang also toured the St James community of Mount Salem which has recorded at least three murders over the last two weeks. The area is currently under a curfew and is part of a Zone of Special Operations since 2017. 

He acknowledged that while gangs in the area have been disrupted, displaced members are still causing problems. 

Noting that the recent killings were the first in eight months, the minister said the work of the security forces and state social agencies is continuing. 

"Increased activity in scamming has generated a lot of financing and of course there's still guns available and people are still willing to use them," Chang told The Gleaner. He said domestic issues remain a key driver of crime in the area. 

And the security minister said there's improved collaboration with residents but "we need more". 

"There's still a tendency for the affected groups to take reprisal into their own hands and I use this opportunity to appeal again to citizens to allow the police to deal with them. The police have the knowledge and they will track them down. Whether they go west, east or north or south, the police are tracking them across the island but that takes a little time to apprehend and lock them down," Chang said. 

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