Five shot in drive-by

Five people were shot and injured following a drive-by at the intersection of Tower Street and Matthews Lane in downtown Kingston about 9:20 p.m. on Thursday.

Head of the Kingston Central Police Division, Superintendent Berrisford Williams, told THE WEEKEND STAR that the gunshot victims were taken to hospital and are being treated.

"None are [suffering from] life-threatening injuries. What [information] we have received so far is that a car drove up and [occupants] opened gunfire at the group of people who were sitting along the roadway," Williams said.

The senior cop said that the area has been relatively peaceful in recent times and that the police were treating the matter as an isolated incident.

"Usually, the people would just sit there and lyme. We had a meeting there with them on Monday as part of our community walk-through engagement, although we have not had an issue there for the longest while," Williams added.

Since January, there have been 20 reported incidents of shootings in the police division. The figures represent an 81 per cent increase when compared with the numbers for the corresponding period in 2022.

The Jamaica Constabulary Force has also reported that the division experienced the same number of murders (12) since the start of the year when compared to the corresponding period from the previous year.