A person of interest relative to the November 6, 2023 triple murder in Salt Spring, St James, which tragically included two schoolboys among the victims, has been apprehended by the security forces.
In what is being hailed as a display of the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s (JCF) diligence and commitment, in tandem with support from its law enforcement partners, a breakthrough was made in the pursuit of the person of interest on Friday.
In a release, the police said from 3:30 pm to 8:30 pm on Friday, a coordinated, intelligence-led operation was carried out in Barrett Town, St James, which ended with the apprehension of the person of interest.
The release said the detailed operation, a joint effort between the JCF and the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF), targeted a guesthouse in Barrett Town.
The police said a joint team of security personnel swiftly entered the premises, and conducted a comprehensive search, resulting in the person of interest being found and detained without any issues.
The individual is now in police custody and is said to be contributing to the ongoing investigations relative to the triple murder.
During the operation, a maintenance worker at the guesthouse was also detained, pending further investigation, the police reported.
The release said the operation was executed “with utmost professionalism, concluding without any incident”.
Amid national outrage at the incident in which an individual callously sprayed a taxi with passengers with bullets from a high-powered rifle, killing two primary school children and an adult who was said to have been the target of the attack, Prime Minister Andrew Holness gave a directive to the security forces that they “must find him”.
Holness said persons in the community knew who was the attacker, and the security forces should make sure that he is found, as nothing less would be acceptable within the overall circumstances of the really disturbing development.
