- File
Commissioner of Police Francis Forbes (left), and Deputy Commissioner Lucius Thomas at a conference.
Glenroy Sinclair, Staff Reporter
THE GRUESOME method of murdering people, then burning their bodies, is a developing trend that senior detectives are concerned about and probing.
This type of murder is similar to the 'necklace killing' frequently practised in parts of South Africa.
Reports are that since January there have been at least 12 reported cases in Kingston, Clarendon, Trelawny, St. Catherine, Hanover and St. Thomas. Five of these brutal killings were committed in the month of May.
The most recent act was the mysterious death of two persons, whose bodies were set ablaze near the intersection of Rose Lane and Spanish Town Road in downtown Kingston, Wednesday evening. The police have reasons to believe that the victims were executed in a building near the market area, based on evidence taken so far.
Another high-profile and widely publicised case was that of Lollette Salmon who was abducted in May, shortly after she had arrived from an overseas trip. She was taken from Burnt Savannah in Westmoreland. Her partially burnt body was later found at a riverside in Hanover.
"The burning of bodies is a trend and one of concern. This goes to show you how organised the criminal world is," Deputy Commissioner Lucius Thomas told The Sunday Gleaner.
THE MOTIVE
The country's Crime Chief believes the motive behind the act is to destroy the identity of victims. The officer further said that forensic science is helping the police in identifying the burnt bodies.
The Deputy Commissioner des-cribed some of these deaths as "crimes of passion". He also sees elements of revenge in some cases. Since the start of this year 182 persons have been killed as result of reprisals or revenge.
Forensic expert, Sherron Brydson, who is a 21-year veteran at the Government Laboratory, said the charred remains of these victims can be identified through various DNA analysis or previous dental records.
"We only do Nuclear DNA analysis in Jamaica. It is the most discriminating method in identifying the individual," Miss Brydson ex-plained.
This method includes paternity test, taking DNA samples from parents, siblings or children to assist in establishing the identity of the deceased. The success will depend on the level of the degradation of the victim's bone.
DNA TESTING
Responding to questions about the processing of samples, Miss Brydson said it takes between one and three weeks to complete the DNA testing on these bones. She said they have had "some success" using forensic investigation to determine the identity these burnt bodies.
There are other modern DNA technology such as Mitochondria and YSTR, which specifically identify the relatives of the deceased. In the case of the Mitochondria, samples are taken from the mother or female relative to establish the relation. It is the opposite in the YSTR, where DNA samples are taken from the father or male relatives.
Psychologist, Dr. Grace Kelly, head of the Behavioural Science Department, at the Northern Caribbean University (NCU), cited a number of reasons why the perpetrators of these crimes would want to burn the bodies, including disposal of the evidence.
She explained too, that these persons do not necessarily have to be high on drugs in order to commit these types of murders.
"They can be propelled by anger and anger is worse than being on drugs," said Dr. Kelly.
The psychologist stressed that among the reasons for committing such barbaric acts of killing and then burning the body, is to establish themselves in their gangs. She said some of persons are people who have been abused from early childhood and grew up with the bitter feelings.
"The environment is a key factor because they are influenced by what they saw. Violent movies also impact negatively on people. We need some positive programmes to deal with this, but first, the individual has to realise that he has a problem," Dr. Kelly told The Sunday Gleaner.
