Murder committed during JCF’s BOPD roll-out in MoBay

Yesterday's planned roll-out of the Jamaica Constabulary Force's (JCF) Beat Officer Patrol Division ((BOPD) in Montego Bay, St James, was overshadowed by the murder of a man at the corner of Union and King streets, a short distance from Sam Sharpe Square.

According to reports, shortly after 10 a.m, while the BOPD team were busily filtering out across downtown, the peace and tranquility of the morning was interrupted by a barrage of gunfire, which caused pedestrians to flee for safety in all directions. When the shooting subsided, a man was seen laying in a pool of blood on the ground close to a supermarket located on the lower section of King Street. Several spent shells were scattered on the ground around him.

Several police personnel converged on the location. Prior to processing the scene, the area was cordoned off, forcing motorists to seek out alternative routes to get into Sam Sharpe Square and the Church Street area. An elderly woman, who was one of the many persons who fled in panic when the gunshots began ringing out, told THE STAR that she was frightened, she urinated on herself.

"The last time me run so fast was when me was going to school way back in the '60s," she said. "I am a little bit ashamed to tell you, but me 'pee pee up' myself when me a run...knowing my husband, he is going to have a good laugh when me tell him."

Yesterday's roll-out of the BOPD marked the beginning of an initiative to create a proactive shield for residents and visitors doing business in Montego Bay.

- A.F.