( L - R ) Witter, Llewellyn

The Bureau of Special Investigations (BSI) has submitted a report on the shooting deaths of five men in Tivoli Gardens, West Kingston, to the director of public prosecutions (DPP) for a ruling on the controversial incident.

DPP Paula Llewellyn told The Gleaner on Wednesday that she was handed the files on the case last Friday, along with other documents, but that she had not yet been able to view them.

"I have not had an opportunity to deal with them, and I hope to deal with it in short order," Llewellyn said.

The five men - 23-year-old Fitzroy Daley, 22-year-old Omar Palmer, 20-year-old Ronaldo Mitchell, 18-year-old Conrad Francis and 23-year-old Kwesi Cunningham - were killed by members of the security forces during the shooting which occurred on Keith Avenue shortly after midday January 13.

Furore

The shooting caused a furore in the community when residents said the men were killed in cold blood. According to reports from the police, they were fired upon, when they tried to accost a wanted man, and returned fire.

A soldier and a policeman were also shot and injured in the incident, and nine illegal guns, along with hundreds of rounds of ammunition, seized. Residents blocked several roads in the area to protest the shooting and accused the security forces of unprofessional conduct.

Prime Minister Bruce Golding, who is member of parliament for West Kingston, also ordered a coroner's inquest into the matter to determine how the men were killed.

In the meantime, the Office of the Public Defender is expecting to welcome, in a few days, a ballistics expert and a scene of crime investigator from England who have agreed to assist in the investigation of the killings. Public Defender Earl Witter told The Gleaner that the men are to come from the London Metropolitan Police and Scotland Yard.

Thorough investigation wanted

"What we want, at the end of the day, is a thorough investigation and, I'm not supposing that the BSI is any less committed, but we pursue the same thing along different lines," he said.

Witter added that he has received the final report from British forensic scientist Professor Derrick Pounder, who witnessed the autopsies of the five men who were killed. He, however, declined to comment on the details of the report, saying it would be inappropriate to do so before the start of judicial proceedings.

Over 270 persons were killed in confrontations with the police in 2007.