St James constable charged with murder as Jamaica police probe shootings, crash and bomb scares

Constable Andrew Wilson has been charged with murder in relation to the May 17 fatal shooting of Latoya Woolery Balkin in Granville, St James. Wilson appeared in the St James Parish Court on Wednesday after the Director of Public Prosecutions directed that he be charged, following an Independent Commission of Investigations probe.

The court refused him bail, ordered him to hand over travel documents and warned him not to contact or interfere with witnesses. The case is set for June 16, 2026. Balkin had reportedly been carrying residents to a protest linked to the earlier police shooting of 17-year-old TJ Edwards when she became involved in an encounter with officers in Granville Square. Widely circulated CCTV showed her inside a stopped Toyota Voxy before an officer fired towards the vehicle. The police had initially alleged she threatened to run over the officer. The footage also showed officers removing her from the vehicle and placing her in a police pickup. The killing triggered roadblocks, fires and unrest in the community. INDECOM said 65 law enforcement personnel have been charged from its investigations since January 2024, including 10 in 2026.

In St Andrew, 24-year-old truck driver Calvin Brown of Park Road, Lawrence Tavern, was shot dead at home about 11:40 p.m. while repairing a motorcycle. He was taken to Kingston Public Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Constant Spring detectives are investigating, and no motive has been established. Police figures show St Andrew North recorded three murders up to May 31, an 81 per cent year-on-year decline.

Seven-year-old Aiden Watson of Fairfield Close, Fairfield Park, Spanish Town, has died after a May 28 collision in St Catherine involving an orange Larma motorcycle ridden by an 18-year-old from Leona Heights. The Spanish Town Traffic Department is probing the crash.

In another St Andrew matter, 27-year-old Lamar White, otherwise called Lamphead, of Railway Road, Kingston 11, has been charged over a November 22, 2025 shooting on Cricket Way. Police allege he attacked a man seated in a white Nissan AD wagon. The victim was hospitalised in stable condition.

Event promoter Ian Parks was fined $110,000 after pleading guilty over a May 2 illegal party in Bogue Hill, Stony Hill, where he handed an officer two $5,000 notes to keep the event going. A judge also ordered him to apologise in court.

Spanish Town police and hospital officials also responded to separate bomb threats late Monday, June 1. Searches at the police station found nothing suspicious, while investigations into both threats continue.