Jamaica: Child, two adults shot in August Town home invasion

One of numerous bullet holes left at a home on Bryce Hill Road, August Town, St Andrew, yesterday. Attackers sprayed bullets into the home the previous night injuring three of the occupants including an eight-year-old.
One of numerous bullet holes left at a home on Bryce Hill Road, August Town, St Andrew, yesterday. Attackers sprayed bullets into the home the previous night injuring three of the occupants including an eight-year-old.

(Jamaica Gleaner) When gunmen invaded her August Town home and started firing indiscriminately at 2 o’clock yesterday morning, senior citizen *Montross Howell jumped out of her bed and turned off the lights, putting the shooters at a disadvantage.

When the shooting subsided, three occupants of the house, including an eight-year-old, were found suffering from gunshot wounds.

The father of one of the injured persons told The Gleaner, “The shooting started in ya suh and then everybody exit the room and deh ina da side ya. Grandma jump out her bed and plug out the light … then dem start fire through dat window.”

The fearful child ran under a bed but was struck by a bullet in his leg.

The Gleaner understands that a woman who was inside the house was also shot in her shoulder. The other male occupant was shot in the leg.

The incident occurred at 35 Bryce Hill Road and residents say the gunmen may have escaped on foot.

When our news team arrived at the location yesterday afternoon, the residents were cleaning out the bloodstained dwelling.

They showed our news team shattered windows and damaged furniture, which told a grim tale of luck, as to how the occupants made it out alive.

SLEEPING ELSEWHERE
Howell told The Gleaner that she was fearful and would not be sleeping at the house tonight.

She said, “I am fearful cause see it deh dem bore up mi mattress with gunshot. Mi bring in Jesus ina ya 2 o’ clock this morning. Me and him (Jesus) did in here. When mi realise say me grandson get shot, mi just hold him two hands and say ‘Jesus’, you nah dead.”

The Gleaner was told that the gunmen went on the house and fired shots through the roof.

There was a fatal shooting in the community on Wednesday where 44-year-old Susan Bogle was shot and killed, allegedly by a member of the security forces.

The residents were on edge, and now this latest incident has left the community with more questions than answers as to the motive behind the latest shooting.

Councillor for the Papine division, Venesha Phillips, condemned the shooting and what she called gang violence plaguing the community.

Phillips told The Gleaner, “My message is not so much surrounding that (latest incident), it’s in a general way about what is happening in the community. The truth be told is while you have not got it as news, we have had gunfire almost every single night for the last couple of weeks.”

Phillips told our news team that the persons in conflict are fighting for “turf, money, guns and other things that are just not in the interest of the community”.

The St Andrew Central police are investigating.