August Town residents mount roadblock following shooting
ST ANDREW, Jamaica— Irate residents in August Town, St Andrew mounted a roadblock in the community on Thursday in protest against the alleged shooting and injury of a man by police.
The residents who were reportedly preparing for a motorcade with the People’s National Party on Wednesday when the shooting occurred, are accusing the police of wrongdoing. They told reporters that the cops were driving an unmarked vehicle, and were not wearing uniform. The residents also said that the lawmen did not identify themselves before opening gunfire which injured the man.
The aunt of the injured man recounted the incident to reporters.
“I was at my shop yesterday, and I come up and I see a crowd. I saw my sister on the ground and from I see my sister on the ground and me hear shot, me know say somebody fi me get shot. So when me come up me see the car a drive off. It was an unmarked car so when me come up and get the video dem the police don’t have on any uniform or anything,” the upset woman said.
She said that the men who alighted from the unmarked vehicle did not fit police standards.
“The video a show say them come and fly out of the car because whole heap of the youth dem deh here because of motorcade ago gwaan. … The police dem come, them not even identify themself, one of the police dem tongue bore, police have earring in him ears, police have hair plait up in the air, how yah go know that is a police? If you see man like that you ago say a drive-by a come in or man a come in so yah go run don’t it?” she asked.
She said her nephew sustained three gunshot wounds; one of which went into his knee. She told reporters that the doctor has said that the injured man has a 20 per cent chance of him returning home with his leg intact.
She added that her nephew is at the hospital under police guard as lawmen had reportedly found a firearm during Wednesday’s shooting.
“Right now him gone back gone do surgery on his knee. He got three shots but the knee cap lick out. I don’t go back up there this morning because him under police guard. Them handcuff him this morning. Them tell him that them find gun so him under police guard. But them have to carry him back (to the operation theatre) and doctor say it is a 20 per cent chance for him to come out back with his foot,” she said.
She said that she does not believe that the cops found a firearm on her nephew.
“I need justice. If I know that they did find a gun I would say well him have a gun on him so anything is anything but them don’t come out with no gun. If you come somewhere and you shoot up somebody and you get a gun, are you going to leave the person on the ground?” she questioned.
There is a heavy police presence in the community as a result of the protest.