By Erica James-King, Staff ReporterWESTERN BUREAU:
A MAN was shot and killed during an attempted robbery in Lilliput, St. James on New Year's Eve, while several other crimes marred festivities at the dawn of 2003.
The police told The Gleaner that one of three men who attempted to rob the proprietor of a shop in Lilliput about 9:50 p.m., was reportedly shot during a struggle with the proprietor. A firearm was also wrested from the would-be robber.
The dead man is Shawn Henrico Chennis of Albion Lane, Montego Bay.
It is reported that three men held up and demanded money from the shopkeeper, and when the demand was not met, Chennis forced his way into the service area of the shop. The proprietor reportedly held him, and a struggle ensued, during which Chennis was shot. A Colt Super 38 semi-automatic pistol with six rounds of ammunition was reportedly taken from him.
The other two men escaped on foot in the area. Chennis was taken to the Cornwall Regional Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Meanwhile, the St. James Police made an ammunition/drugs haul in the Rose Heights area of St. James on New Year's day.
As a result of the seizure four persons, including a juvenile, were arrested for breaches of the Firearms and Dangerous Drugs Acts and they are booked to appear in the Western Regional Gun Court next Wednesday.
Charged with illegal possession of firearm and ammunition and possession of ganja are: "Scully" McFarlane, 34, and Donnette Grant, 34, both of Rose Heights; Wayne Morrison, 31, and a 14-year-old girl of Haughton Grove, Hanover.
Reports are that at 8 a.m. yesterday, police were carrying out a raid in Rose Heights and premises occupied by the four were searched. The search revealed three firearms and ammunition.
A quantity of ganja was also seized. The number of illegal guns recovered from the streets of St. James during 2002 totalled 45. The parish murder toll jumped from 75 in 2001 to 82 last year.
The escalating crime wave in St. James gave rise to a shake-up in the hierarchy of the police force, with certain transfers coming into effect yesterday.
Deputy Superintendent Roy Boyd was transferred from his post as Crime Chief for St. James, to take up a position with the Criminal Investigative Bureau in Kingston, while head of the St. James Police Division has been removed to take up position as head of the Police traffic Division on Elletson Road, Kingston.
