The sunshine city has attracted a lot of darkness in recent months as well. This has manifested in the form of some of the most heinous crimes, which have shocked the nation. A proliferation of gangs has unleashed vicious attacks on law-abiding citizens and have instilled fear in residents living in communities like Naggo Head, Newlands and Gregory Park which are crime-hot spots constantly under the police radar. Jamaicans woke up to the horrific news of the early morning gun and arson attack along Walkers Avenue in Gregory Park in August last year, which claimed the lives of two people and left dozens homeless. A group of men reportedly armed with rifles and handguns made their way through the community, throwing gas oil on the houses then setting them ablaze, while opening gunfire as the occupants tried to escape the burning buildings. A senior citizen who sustained burns all over her body later died.
The heart-rendering story of Danielle Rowe, who was abducted from the Braeton Primary School and then found with her throat slashed in St Andrew, drew national attention and plunged the country into grief. The senseless killing of Independence City resident, 20-year-old Khanice Jackson, whose body was dumped in a ditch at the side of a road in Portmore by her attacker, and many others have cast the municipality in a negative spotlight. The forces of darkness have snuffed out the lives of persons from every class in Portmore, including the political class. Councillor for the Southborough division, Ainsley Parkins was shot dead July last year. The PNP councillor was murdered while overseeing a debushing project in the municipality. A year prior, the JLP councillor-caretaker for the Southborough Division, Lennox Hines was also killed along Marcus Garvey Drive in Kingston.
Last year March, the St. Catherine South Police unveiled a business watch plan to tackle the increasing criminality plaguing the municipality and todismantle the 18 gangs they said were operating in the area. The initiative came after two major attacks in three weeks on two Beryllium private security cash transit vehicles delivering money to JN and Scotiabank ATMs. The plan included the installation of CCTV cameras with facial recognition and license plate reader features at points of entry and exit in and out of Portmore. Senior superintendent Christopher Phillips who heads the St. Catherine South Police, said there was strong support for the initiative. Among those who supported the initiative was the president of the Portmore Chamber of Commerce, Norman Walker.
“We recognise that organised crime seems to be settling in and we really have to find a way to keep ahead of this scourge,” he said at the time.
