New York Daily News

Photog: I want cash after bash

- BY KEBA SMITH and RICH SCHAPIRO BY CHRISTINA CARREGA

THE FATHER of a Queens woman slain in Jamaica poured out his heart to investigat­ors Saturday after traveling to the Caribbean island seeking answers in his daughter’s unsolved slaying.

“I would have preferred if it was me who died and not her,” Gairy Gibbon told detectives while sitting inside his family’s guesthouse alongside his wife, Andrea.

“I loved her very much. The kind of love I had for this child, it pains me to know that she died like this.”

Investigat­ors revealed to the griefstric­ken parents that they had a person of interest in the murder of Desiree Gibbon, 26.

The detectives said they were hunting for a man known as Rasta. They also told the parents that they believe Gibbon trusted the wrong people.

The Hollis woman’s body was found on the side of a rural road in St. James Parish on Saturday morning, Nov. 25.

Gibbon’s throat was cut and multiple bruises covered her body, indicating that she struggled with her killer, authoritie­s said.

An autopsy is scheduled for Tuesday to determine her cause of death.

Gibbon’s parents met with investigat­ors for more than 90 minutes at the family’s Gibbs Chateau guesthouse in Montego Bay.

Afterward, the victim’s mother said she wanted the FBI to take over the investigat­ion.

“I’m encouraged. However, I want the FBI to intervene now,” Andrea Gibbon said.

“(Jamaican police) cannot stay in (the capital) Kingston and investigat­e a murder in Montego Bay.”

Gibbon’s father said he planned to do everything possible to ensure that Desiree’s killers face justice.

“I’m not giving up on my daughter,” Gairy Gibbon said.

“I’m not going to rest until her murderers are found.”

Desiree Gibbon arrived in Jamaica on Oct. 20 and planned to return home Nov. 30. A police official had told the Daily News that Gibbon left the guesthouse on Nov. 25. But investigat­ors told the family that she went out on Thursday night, Nov. 23.

She left the guesthouse with her two phones — one from the U.S., one from Jamaica — but without any identifica­tion or cash.

Investigat­ors were still looking for the cell phones.

They were also seeking to track down several people who Gibbon befriended during her trip.

“When she was born, I always looked at her as such a special girl,” Gairy Gibbon said.

“She was a genuine person with a good heart.” A CELEBRITY videograph­er who claims he was knocked out by the bodyguard of rapper 2 Chainz now wants the performer to pay up.

Videograph­er R.J. Capak (above) said he was at NBC studios in Midtown on Oct. 27 waiting to film actress Rose McGowan when the paparazzi got a heads up that the rapper was en route.

Capak, 64, said he began filming 2 Chainz, born Tauheed Epps, as the Atlanta-based entertaine­r walked into 30 Rockefelle­r Plaza.

According to Capak, bodyguard Rory Smith made sure to keep the cameramen away from 2 Chainz (inset), who has relied on crutches to get around since breaking his leg in August.

But then Smith charged at Capak, the videograph­er said, brandishin­g one of 2 Chainz’s crutches.“The bodyguard came at me with the crutch like he’s gonna joust me,” Capak told the Daily News a week after the attack.

The next moments were a blur, the videograph­er said. He heard a loud metal noise and was knocked unconsciou­s. He woke up on the lobby floor of NBC Studios, Capak said.

“Celebrity photograph­ers should not be assaulted simply because they are doing their job,” said Capak’s attorney Sanford Rubenstein, who is expected to file a lawsuit in Manhattan Supreme Court on Monday, against the award-winning rapper and Smith.

The bruised and battered cameraman is suing for an unspecifie­d amount for punitive damages .

A publicist for 2 Chainz did not immediatel­y respond to requests for comment.

 ??  ?? Desiree Gibbon (right) was killed in Jamaica, where she was staying at resort (right). Her parents, Gairy and Andrea (above), arrive on island seeking answers. Inset, Desiree cuddles with boyfriend Phil Rodriguez.
Desiree Gibbon (right) was killed in Jamaica, where she was staying at resort (right). Her parents, Gairy and Andrea (above), arrive on island seeking answers. Inset, Desiree cuddles with boyfriend Phil Rodriguez.
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