Newsmaker: Man raised by victim’s mom now booked for her murder

This week's featured overall development as Newsmaker of the Week is the range of reactions to the alleged stunning confession of a 27-year-old man to killing and burying 31-year-old Lisa-Gaye 'Babes' Coubre behind her yard in Retreat district in Glengoffe, St Catherine.

Orlando Chin, otherwise called ‘Juckie’, a butcher of Retreat district, has been charged with murder and unlawful burial of the dead following an incident in the community on Saturday, September 28.

The crime is even more chilling, as the suspect was raised by Coubre's mother from he was 10 years old.

The crime in the normally peaceful rural community has shocked the nation, with many pondering over the real reason behind the suspect's alleged killing of a woman who many describe as being literally "his own sister".

Residents of Retreat and Girls Town Lane in Glengoffe are also struggling to come to terms with the heinous crime, as the suspect was a familiar face in the community.

According to reports, he had even reportedly participated in the search for Coubre, who went missing on September 28. A $100,000 reward had been offered for her safe return, and the community held out hope that she would have been found alive.

Coubre had a form of disability, according to family members.

On Monday night those hopes were dashed when the suspect confessed to the crime after turning up at the Lawrence Tavern Police Station in St Andrew.

By Tuesday morning, the suspect led police investigators to Coubre's partially decomposed body, which was buried in a shallow grave behind the yard where he lived with the now deceased woman and her mom, among other family members.

The body was removed and taken to the morgue, pending a post-mortem examination at a later date.

The revelation left Coubre's mother, Sonia Beverley, requiring medical attention.

Beverley, who had taken the suspect under her wings since he was 10 years old, expressed her anguish.

"Dem tek him fi dem brother because I don't have any sons," she told reporters at the scene.

The mother of four daughters said up to Sunday, she cooked for the suspect and he ate.

"A so di boy repay mi. Him kill mi daughter," Beverley wailed as police officers tried to keep residents from the crime scene, especially when they saw the suspect being placed in a police service vehicle and leaving the scene.

It is understood that on the day Cobre disappeared, her mother went to Kingston to purchase items for her stall. When she returned, her daughter could not be found.

Family members told reporters that the suspect showed no signs of behavioural change, and they never knew he was capable of doing such an act.

An official police report late on Saturday indicated that about 2pm, Coubre and Chin got involved in a dispute that became physical, during which Chin allegedly pushed Coubre, causing her to fall and hit her head, after which she became unresponsive.

Efforts by Chin to resuscitate Coubre reportedly failed, and he subsequently deposed of her body in a shallow grave in the vicinity of the home where they lived.

Relatives of the deceased and residents of the community in general are also questioning how the suspect managed to bury Coubre without being detected, as where her body was buried is located down a steep slope behind the house.

Meanwhile, head of the St Catherine North police, Superintendent Hopton Nicholson, assured that a post-mortem examination will determine the cause of death.

Chin was charged on Saturday after a question-and-answer session was held with investigators in the presence of his attorney.

His court date is being finalised.

Social media users were outraged at the heinous crime, with some finding it hard to come to terms that an individual murdered a woman who grew up with him like a sister.

"In a country like Jamaica, where crime is rampant, the need for police to act swiftly and judiciously in cases of missing persons becomes paramount; such urgency can be the difference between life and death," a man opined on Facebook.

"But nobody see this man burying this lady behind their own house? Smh, perilous time we are living in," a woman wrote.

A man wrote that, "Why mankind get so wicked to women now? Come on, stop kill out our women."

On Instagram, a user of the platform said that, "This is why I am hesitant to take in people into my home for an extended period of time.

"I'm quick to offer assistance, but that is where I draw the line," the user said.

A woman wrote: "I really want to hear the real motive why he killed her (Coubre). How could you kill a woman who was like your sister? Cold world!"

Said a man: "This a one case mi feel the death penalty fi use pon, 'cause the woman sorry fi yuh and raise yuh and look how yuh (allegedly) end up kill her daughter? Wicked act!"

Shared another: "The same dog you feed turn ’round bite yuh. RIP baby girl. My condolences to your family."