Mom thinks cops targeting her son

A distraught mother is crying out for justice as she believes that her son, Odane Lester, 29, was killed by the police who mistook him for a wanted man in Windsor Heights, Central Village, St Catherine, on June 9.

"I would want the police to speak the truth and admit that they killed the wrong person by mistake. Just clear his name," she said. Walker said that based on information she has received, the police were tipped off that a wanted man was standing in a lane.

"I was told that the person was in the lane ... but my son passed and came out of the lane before that person and without asking question, they just shoot him," she said.

"I was angry because my son is a hard-working child. He just went to check on his baby because he was leaving for St Thomas to do some road work the following morning. He was just killed just like that without any questions. I am really angry," Walker added.

The Independent Commission of Investigations has confirmed that an investigation has been launched into the Lester shooting.

Meanwhile, Walker said her son was a devoted father. She said Lester's death has taken a toll on her health as she has been in and out of the hospital since June.

"All of a sudden I have low blood pressure and my heart rate is so high that I have to see the doctors every week. I am going back to the doctor tomorrow (today)," she said.

It is the second time that Walker has found herself at odds with the State, following the shooting of one of her children. In 2013, another of her three sons was shot in the hip and back by the police, but he survived. She said the matter was placed before the court and the judgment was in his favour.

"They were trying to say that he was shooting at them ... but we beat them in court. It is still before the court as we are waiting for payout," she said. But she expressed fear that he is being targeted by the police. She alleged that lawmen recently went to his house and conducted themselves in a manner that leaves her worried for his safety.

"The room door was locked where my son sleeps, but the television was on and they kicked the door off and went in search of my son. He wasn't home at the time because he is a security [guard] and was at work at the time," she said.