Two men killed, two others shot and injured in St James

WESTERN BUREAU:

A 19-YEAR-OLD is among two persons killed in separate incidents in St James on Friday.

Dead are Damion Smith, 19, a labourer from Flanker; and 22-yearold Kemar ‘Red Plate’ Hoffenden, a push cart man of Pitfour.

Two other men – a 22-yearold of Paradise, Norwood, and a 23-year-old of Farm Heights, both motorcycle deliverymen – were shot and injured in one of the incidents and are now hospitalised in serious condition.

Another push cart vendor, who the police have only identified as ‘Hog Head’, is being sought in connection with one of the murders.

Reports are that, shortly after 10:00 pm on Friday, Smith and the two deliverymen were walking along Seaview Drive in Flanker when they were ambushed by a group of armed men. The gunmen shot all three before escaping on foot.

POLICE SUMMONED TO SCENE

Residents in the community summoned the Coral Gardens police and the men were taken to the Cornwall Regional Hospital, where Smith was pronounced dead and the other two admitted in serious condition.

Earlier in the day, the Barnett Street police reported that, about 4:40 pm, Hoffenden, who operated a push cart at the Charles Gordon Market i n Montego Bay, got involved in a dispute with ‘Hog Head’.

‘Hog Head’ reportedly used a knife to stab Hoffenden in his chest before fleeing the scene. The victim was rushed to the Cornwall Regional Hospital by vendors at the market, where he died while being treated.

“We have commenced investigations into both incidents and have identified a main suspect in the market incident, and he is presently being sought by the police,” a senior police officer told The Sunday Gleaner.

Since the start of the year, 127 persons have been murdered in the parish of St James, despite curfews being imposed in the hotspots of Granville, and two Zones of Special Operations in Norwood and Mount Salem communities.