Gunmen shoot security guard

A security guard who was shot and injured during a daring daylight robbery at a Chinese-operated supermarket in downtown Montego Bay, on Thursday, is now battling for life at the Cornwall Regional Hospital.

The guard, who hails from Farm Pen, Llandilo, Westmoreland, underwent surgery and is now in the intensive care unit.

Reports by the Barnett Street police are that shortly after 12:30 p.m. yesterday, two men wearing masks entered the supermarket and held one of the operators at gunpoint.

They then demanded money, but before the operator could comply, the security intervened and he and one of the gunmen got involved in a tussle. The guard was shot multiple times.

The men then ran from the supermarket and escaped in the direction of King Street.

Too shaken to speak

The supermarket's operators were too shaken to speak with THE WEEKEND STAR, so it is still unclear if the robbers managed to escape with any cash.

"Mi seh, mi car jus full up a passenger and mi ready fi drive out a di supermarket yard when mi hear pure gunshot, next ting mi know is that every passenger start bail outa mi car, dem all run gone lef them goods ina di trunk. Mi never have no other choice but fi run lef the car to," one taxi operator said. "Next ting mi know is seh mi see the boy dem a buss shot fi clear the crowd so dem can mek dem escape, and everybody affe run fi dem life."

He said that after the robbers escaped, persons rushed the security guard to hospital.

"Boy this yah nu real, imagine yu have a police station right a Church Street corner jus few foot from yah so, an di man dem still a manage fi carry out dem kind a robbery yah, inna broad daylight, without dem a get ketch. Di police dem need fi pull up dem socks," the taxi operator said.

Earlier this year, popular Montego Bay Chinese business operator Kenneth Li, and his personal security guard, were both shot and killed.

They were robbed of millions of dollars in broad daylight, as they pulled up outside a bank, which is located on a neighbouring street to where Thursday's incident took place.