Police say robbery behind shooting of three men near St. Catherine school

By Racquel Porter    

 

The St. Catherine North Police say robbery appears to have been the motive behind the shooting of three men in the vicinity of Tacius Golding High School last Friday.

 

The Ministry of Education in a press release on Saturday expressed grave concern about the shooting incident near the school which later spilled over onto the campus.

 

The ministry said students were promptly gathered in a central location for debriefing and emotional support before an early dismissal was arranged.

 

Superintendent Hopton Nicholson, head of the St. Catherine North Police Division, said the men were ambushed along the main road leading to the school.

 

Superintendent Nicholson said the investigation is progressing and a person of interest in the case will be named soon. 

 

"At this moment we have a team at the school, along with educators, members of the Ministry of Education there. They are actually providing reassurance and counselling for students. Even though the incident did not happen at the school, we know the proximity to where the incident happened will have some effect on the school, and so a team is there reassuring persons, the school community and the community at large."

 

He said the police are pursuing the perpetrators with a view to bringing them to justice. 

 

Superintendent Nicholson urged people to be cautious when transporting large sums of cash, noting that this is the second such shooting linked to a robbery since the start of the year. The previous incident took place in Bog Walk, St. Catherine. 

 

"The person who was killed in the Bog Walk space, information is that he had a large sum of cash as well, and persons knew and they went for it, and in the process he got killed. That's the preliminary information that we have. So we appeal to persons, if you have large sums of money, of cash, do not go broadcasting it. Use smart means to transport it and take it to the bank and reduce the likelihood of being targeted as much as practicable," he pleaded.