15-y-o in custody for killing brother in fight over bucket
Published:Monday | May 22, 2023 | 3:11 AMAinsworth Morris/Staff Reporter
Yesterday afternoon, Tanesha Martin threw herself into chores in her yard as she sought to block her mind from the tragic loss of her 19-year-old son, Norlando McDonald, who died from a stab wound allegedly inflicted by his own sibling on Saturday night.
The brothers had a dispute inside their house at Washington Mews – an informal settlement tucked away behind Westmeade Willows in Portmore, St Catherine – when it is reported that the younger of the two, who is 15 years old, stabbed his older sibling sometime after 9 pm.
For their mother, the incident was reminiscent of the Bible story of Cain and Abel.
On Sunday afternoon, mere hours after the stabbing, she did not want to talk and she did not want to cry. She just wanted to undo the past, over which she had no control, and have her two sons back with her.
For Dwayne Martin, the grieving stepfather of the two youths, he had no words to express how he was feeling either. He urged The Gleaner to speak with the boys’ mother as he found his own chores to keep himself occupied.
The neighbours were also tight-lipped.
Superintendent of Police Christopher Phillips, of the St Catherine South Division, which includes Portmore, where the incident took place, said the youths were arguing over a bucket.
DEADLY ALTERCATION
The argument became physical, and McDonald was fatally stabbed in his left and right side by his brother. He died at the Spanish Town Hospital while undergoing treatment. “The family, they are not taking it too well. We’re talking about two brothers, one now deceased and the other in police custody. The community, I gather that most of the persons there, is a pretty close-knit one, and most of the persons there are related, so the entire community is really in shock and going through that grieving process now,” Phillips told The Gleaner.
After his second visit with the parents on Sunday, he said: “We’re looking to provide them with support during this very difficult time. It’s a very unfortunate situation.”
Phillips also said that the underage accused previously showed signs of abnormal behaviour and might have been on medication.