Police appeal in gas station shooting as Negril crash hurts six and court staff seek protection

Police are urging three men tied to the shooting of a gas station attendant on Diner Road on Wednesday to turn themselves in to Hunts Bay police at once. The trio is also suspected in a series of robberies across the corporate area.

CCTV footage of the incident, which has been shared widely online, shows a light-coloured sedan arriving at the station between 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. Money is passed to the attendant through a vehicle window before she opens the fuel tank. As she turns away, three men get out from the passenger and rear doors and a scuffle breaks out. One man appears to point a gun at the woman while another forces her backward; she collapses out of frame and was taken to hospital for treatment.

In a statement on Friday, police asked anyone with information to contact Hunts Bay CIB at 876923711, the police emergency line at 1119, Crime Stop at 311, or the nearest police station.

At least six people were injured, two of them seriously, in a three-vehicle collision on Norman Manley Boulevard in Negril on Wednesday afternoon. The Negril branch of the Jamaica Fire Brigade responded at 12:59 p.m. and found a Toyota Coaster bus carrying hotel workers, a Toyota Corolla Fielder, and a Toyota Voxy involved in the crash.

District officer Rafael Tenant said several victims had already been taken to hospital by bystanders before firefighters arrived. Two people left on the scene were critically hurt. Tenant said one man appeared to have spinal injuries or a fractured hip and was placed on a spine board before transport to a private hospital. A woman was also seriously injured. Three other women who could sit or stand were hospitalised, along with the bus driver.

Tenant said the Negril Fire Station ambulance was out of service for mechanical repairs, which complicated the rescue. Firefighters sought help from Negril police and a private hospital ambulance to move those still at the scene.

In Trinidad, 25-year-old Jamaican DeAndre Markland has been charged with the murder of businessman Sterling Francois, 45, whose body was found inside his home last month. Markland, arrested on June 26, was charged on July 4 after legal advice from Director of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard. He appeared in court earlier this week and the case was adjourned to October 30 for a status hearing.

Police said Francois was found dead on June 20 after a relative, worried by unanswered calls, went to the house. The front door was closed but unlocked. A bloodstained footprint was seen inside before Francois was discovered lying face down, naked and covered in blood at the top of a staircase. Investigators found bloodstained footprints and splatter throughout the home and recovered a machete believed to be the murder weapon, along with a plastic cup thought to have been used by the killer.

Officers established that Francois returned home about 8:40 p.m. on June 19 with a male companion after leaving earlier that evening in his black Chevrolet Colorado pickup. The visitor was reportedly seen leaving shortly after midnight carrying a knapsack and boarding a brown 4x4 pickup. Relatives reported several missing items, including Francois's iPhone, laptop, PlayStation, and wallet. He owned several businesses, including an auto rental company.

The Jamaican Bar Association has thrown its support behind Supreme Court staff in downtown Kingston who say they fear for their safety and are frustrated by the absence of a canteen at the facility. In a media release on Tuesday signed by president Tenacia T. Watkins, the association said it was deeply concerned by reports highlighting unsafe conditions and inadequate facilities.

"We commend the courage of the employees who have spoken out and we stand in solidarity with them," the association said. "The safety and the well-being of court staff, attorneys at law, and all users of the court are essential to the proper functioning of our justice system."

The group called on Minister of Justice Del Royuk, Commissioner of Police Dr. Kevin Blake, and the mayor of Kingston and chairman of the Kingston and St. Andrew Municipal Corporation, Andrew, to secure the court compound and restore proper facilities. It urged the removal of unauthorised persons, stronger security, controlled courtroom access, and the return of a canteen or alternative meal arrangements.

Staff told reporters the canteen has been shut for around five years, reportedly because its location above an important room on the King Street building posed a fire hazard. One employee, speaking anonymously, said workers must move through surroundings where people of unsound mind gather daily, and cited assaults on staff including a machete attack outside the building. Another said complaints to superiors had gone unresolved, forcing workers to raise the issues publicly.