Daylight murder concerns Spanish Town stakeholders

Sunday's brazen daylight murder of James Beckford, otherwise called 'Rampus', and the injuring of another man is causing disquiet in the Spanish Town business community.

"When I heard the explosion, I said to myself, 'So soon with the firecrackers?' It was after I saw soldiers and police busy that I was told that a Rampus dem killed," said one resident. Several business operators expressed hope that the killing would not adversely affect commerce.

"I am hearing that persons are being warned to avoid Spanish Town. I hope that the police are in control of the situation, as we are fed up," one business operator said.

President of the St Catherine Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Dennis Robotham, said any shooting and murder has a negative impact on commerce.

"We are aware that it is gang conflicts which cause most of these attacks. Although it occurred on a Sunday, we are hoping that it won't repeat itself, as it (the crime) can't be normalised," Robotham said.

Police reports are that about 10:30 a.m., Beckford was talking to a bus driver at the corner of Young Street and Burke Road when they were pounced upon by two armed men who fired gunshots, hitting both men. Beckford and the driver were taken to the Spanish Town Hospital, where Beckford was pronounced dead and the other man hospitalised. It was revealed that Beckford cheated death in 2016 when five persons were shot and killed on March Pen Road.

Meanwhile, motorists and commuters have also expressed concerns, seeing that the driver was also injured. The consensus is that the time of day at which the incident occurred was a major cause for concern.

"The fact that is in the bright day on a Sunday and gunmen just attacked and killed a man in the middle of the town, wi still sey, a who next?" Stanford Mills, a driver, said.

Head of the St Catherine North Police Division, Superintendent Hopton Nicholson, said that the police will redouble their efforts on the streets in Spanish Town and its environs. However, the lawmen were kept busy yesterday, as they launched an investigation into the injuring of two men during a gun attack, also along Young Street. Reports are that about 3:45 p.m., two armed men pounced upon the complainants along the roadway and fired shots hitting them repeatedly. The gunmen escaped, and the injured men were assisted to the Spanish Town Hospital where they have been admitted for treatment.

The Spanish Town Criminal Investigation Branch is probing the matter.