The remnants of four houses, which were fire-bombed by gunmen in the community of Top Temple, adjacent to Glasspole Avenue, Rockfort, east Kingston, yesterday. Several residents were forced to flee after the fire bombing. - Ricardo Makyn/Staff Photographer

Violent killings continued Wednesday night into yesterday in St James, Clarendon and the Corporate Area.

At least seven more persons were murdered, bringing the number of homicides since January to above 660.

According to police statistics, more than 50 per cent of these murders are gang related.

In one of the killings which occurred in Allman Town yesterday, the gunmen watched a police patrol until it disappeared around a corner, then struck at a house near the intersection of Prince of Wales Street and National Heroes Circle and killed Icylyn Reid, 34, alias 'Denise'.

This followed Wednesday's shooting of seven persons, two fatally in the same vicinity.

Fruit vendor killed

In St James, 40-year-old fruit vendor Trevor 'Fernado' Faulknor was shot dead, and his brother shot and injured on Wednesday.

Faulknor, who operated a shop along Felicity Road, in Glendevon, was killed shortly before 6 p.m. while he and his brother were at the business place preparing a meal.

In Clarendon, the number of murders in the parish jumped to 71, with the violent killing of four more persons on Wednesday.