St Catherine police probe Spanish Town killing as CRH family demands post-mortem

Jamaican police are handling several major matters from St Catherine and St James, including the killing of an 18-year-old construction worker in Quarry Hill, Spanish Town, and a family’s demand for answers after a patient died at Cornwall Regional Hospital.

Miguel Anderson, also known as Bingy, of Quarry Hill, was shot dead about 8 p.m. Saturday while seated inside a business place. Police say four armed men attacked him and fled. A man in a nearby parked vehicle was also fired on but was not hurt, though the vehicle was damaged. Anderson was taken to Spanish Town Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. No motive has been reported, and the Spanish Town Criminal Investigation Branch is probing the case, which happened near an area under a 48-hour curfew.

In another St Catherine matter, a 48-year-old taxi operator accused of raping a 13-year-old passenger was granted $500,000 bail in the St Catherine Parish Court on Friday. His name was withheld to protect the child. He is also charged with sexual touching and forcible abduction. Parish Judge Janita Smikle ordered him to report to Browns Hall police on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, surrender travel documents, observe a stop order at ports, and avoid contact with the complainant and witnesses. He is due back in court on September 11, 2026.

Police also received a 27-year-old driver after relatives handed him over following a fatal crash on Old Harbour Road in Spanish Town on Saturday morning. The vehicle reportedly left the roadway about 6:10 a.m., hit pedestrian Claudette Thorpe of Petersfield, St Mary, and crashed into a utility pole. It was not clear whether the driver had been charged.

In St James, relatives of 62-year-old tour bus operator Michael Neita of Tucker Irwin are seeking a post-mortem after he died at Cornwall Regional Hospital on May 25. Daughter Daisy Chambers said he went to the hospital on May 24 with abdominal pain, remained in a chair while awaiting admission, and later died. The family said they were first told a post-mortem would be done, but later received a medical certificate citing urinary tract infection and fatal sepsis, with no post-mortem required.

Dr Delroy Freck of the Western Regional Health Authority confirmed receiving a report on Neita’s death and said the hospital has severe bed constraints. WRHA data to June 10 showed Cornwall Regional had 351 patients for 291 beds, with 84 people in accident and emergency awaiting ward admission.