(Jamaica Gleaner) The gunmen who shot and killed Special Constable Jermaine Bartley in Granville, St James last night, reportedly ordered him and his common-law spouse to kneel and hug each other, before shooting them in the head.
Bartley’s spouse is currently in hospital in serious condition, having escaped the execution-style murder with her life.
In a release the Police High Command said, “The act depicts a heinous crime which has plunged the Constabulary into mourning yet again.
“It speaks to the propensity of brazen criminals to target members of the Constabulary Force on and off the job.”
The High Command said that all its members mourn the loss of a life that was cut short under such vicious circumstances.
They also empathised with the members of Bartley’s family, “whose sorrow we cannot begin to comprehend”.
The High Command said assurance had been given to the family that they would honour Bartley’s memory and his service to the nation.
Adding his voice to the condemnation of the act, Police Commissioner Owen Ellington said he was appalled by the incident.
“I am assuring his colleagues and family that the very nature in which the act was committed is something the Police High Command takes seriously,” Ellington said in a release.
“His death will not go unnoticed or unsolved. The perpetrators will be hunted and brought to justice. We will not allow this dastardly act to go unpunished.”
Bartley, who was attached to the St James Division, had served the Island Special Constabulary Force for four years and was a hard worker, Ellington said.
His family has since been assigned a force chaplain to offer support and counselling.
