Glenroy Sinclair and Rasbert Turner, Gleaner Reporters
AT LEAST five statements have already been collected by the Bureau of Special Investigation (BSI), which is probing Tuesday night's controversial killing of two men by the police, in the Johnson Pen area of Spanish Town, St. Catherine.
"I have assigned a team to investigate this incident, but I have not got an update from them as yet," Acting Assistant Commissioner Granville Gause told The Gleaner yesterday.
The men have been identified as Marlon Beckford, 26, and Dwayne Fisher, 17, both of a Johnson Pen address.
Residents claimed there was no shoot-out, as was reported by the police. The residents further reported that, about 9:30 p.m., a police party drove into the area and fired several shots, killing the men.
Yesterday the protesting residents mounted a roadblock in the area, but after dialogue with the police, the debris was removed from the roadway. However, by daybreak yesterday another person was killed, this time by gunmen who struck at Angels Estate in Spanish Town.
The killing of Arthur 'Max' Smith came on the heels of Tuesday's incident where four persons were shot and killed at a betting shop in Greendale, Spanish Town, and three others hospitalised in serious condition. It is alleged that Mr. Smith was shot about 20 times.
PERMANENT MILITARY POST
Reacting to the spate of shootings, Monsignor Father Richard Albert, who chaired a Crime Prevention Committee meeting of the St. Catherine Chamber of Commerce yesterday, called for the Government to establish a permanent military post in the Old Capital.
The business interests, which have identified a building they believe could be suitable for the military post, have proposed to cover the rental cost if necessary.
A mass meeting is to be held today between all the stakeholders in Spanish Town. They are scheduled to have discussions with officials from the Ministry of National Security.
Spanish Town's Mayor, Dr. Andrew Wheatley, said the Parish Council has requested a meeting with the Police High Command on May 3.
"We will be clamping down on a number of illegal activities in the town and will be supporting the police," the Mayor said.
One of the objectives is to implement measures to correct the social ills in the crime-infested communities of Spanish Town.
