Killings continue despite ZOSO
August Town residents lament murders, shootings
DESPITE August Town, St Andrew, being designated a zone of special operations (ZOSO), the peace residents celebrated two months ago has been disrupted as gunmen kill and injure citizens — the latest victim being 33-year-old Dadrian Sheay.
Sheay was shot in the head by gunmen travelling on foot, and his room at upper Goldsmith Villa firebombed about 2:00 am yesterday. Though in a daze when the Jamaica Observer arrived at the location yesterday morning, Sheay’s relatives and friends unanimously agreed that his killing was unjustified.
They considered whether it made sense to have soldiers and police personnel stationed throughout the community under the ZOSO if such grave incidents can occur in close proximity to joint police/ military bases.
An elderly relative of Sheay said, “A regular me see di soldier dem up and down, and di bwoy dem still come do dat. Di bwoy dem wicked enuh, and dem nuh drive nuh car. Dem build up dem firebomb and den dem walk.”
A friend explained to the elderly relative that the gunmen keep a close watch on the security forces and, therefore, know when to strike.
Sheay was no troublemaker or criminal, the relatives explained, adding that he wasn’t a bother to his family or members of the community and did not deserve such a death.
“Mi just cyaa believe di soldier dem inna di place and this can happen. Him nuh trouble nobody. If you send him go buy something, him go buy it and come back. Him wash car sometimes,” one of his relatives said.
As the reality of his death sunk in, Sheay’s mother, Yvette Blair, who was beyond despair, wept and asked God why her son had to be robbed of his life in a manner that won’t even allow her to stage his funeral in a dignified way. She shared that she has been struggling with the pain from her pregnant daughter’s killing three years ago, and that yesterday’s tragedy has compounded her sorrow.
“God, God, God, God! Dem kill him and dem still bun him up. Mi cyaa get fi bury him now. It hot, Sir; it hot. Two a mi pickney dem gone now. Dem kill mi pregnant daughter a Maxfield, [St Andrew] three years now. Nine people did get shot and she died pregnant, and now this! How mi ago manage? Mi weak man. Dadrian nuh deserve this,” she said.
Jerome Vidal was among a small group of protesters who took to the streets in the community in condemnation of the recent killings and shootings. She shared that too many members of her family have been killed by the gun, and called on the community to start celebrating in unison once again.
She had no explanation for the community making a drastic shift from hosting fun and exciting events, such as water wars, back to gun wars.
“From ‘bout a week and odd ago, we just started having some shootings in the community. Friday, a big man from outta port got shot. Another man from in the community also got shot, too. This morning (Sunday) when I wake up, I hear that a guy got shot and burn up in his house. All mi a try tell dem is just done it. It a affect our likkle youths and it affects we the mothers, too. All we want is just peace. It makes no sense we kill our brothers and sisters. Let us come together again as one.
“It a affect all di elder dem, too, because when dem hear di gunshot dem, dem die or go to hospital. Some of them have some serious illness. When di shot dem start up here, dem nuh pretty. Me standing here, lose my innocent pickney dem to gunshot. Mi lose mi daughter by gunshot. Mi lose mi son by gunshot. Mi lose mi nephew, and mi niece get shot up last year inna house when dem have shoot-out because dem seh she live on borderline. It nuh worth it,” she said.
Vidal appealed to the gunmen to desist.
“You ago kill until you end up kill your own. Mi a beg di man dem fi see if dem can stop. Let us live as one and see if we can make some money in our community for our youths. They have youths, too, and they need to think about their youths. I wish all tomorrow morning we can get up and di whole a we come back as one. Up to three weeks ago, we all were united with one another. We could go anywhere and people from anywhere in the community could come here. The shooting just start, until you start see killing,” she said.