TODS seeks probe after seven die in Trelawny crash; Foster held in Bronx killing

The Transport Operators Development Sustainable Service is urging authorities to investigate Friday’s fatal two-vehicle collision on the Salt Marsh main road in Falmouth, Trelawny, which left seven people dead.

In a Friday statement, the group said the crash echoed a July 6, 2025 wreck in the same area that killed five people, including four transport operators. It noted the stretch had been discussed at a National Road Safety Council meeting on Thursday, July 16, 2026. TODS stressed it was not claiming poor road conditions caused Friday’s crash, but said the condition of some roads in the north and west remains worrying. The organisation asked for a thorough inquiry and a public account of the cause, and offered condolences to those affected. With heavy weekend travel toward St. Ann expected, it also urged motorists to drive carefully.

In New York, 58-year-old Jamaican Michael Foster was ordered held without bail after appearing in court over the fatal shooting of his niece, Julia Anderson, in a Bronx property dispute. Arraigned on Thursday, he faces murder, manslaughter and weapons charges stemming from a Wednesday arrest. Bronx Assistant District Attorney Burim Namani told the court Foster had earlier been convicted of first-degree manslaughter in the 1988 drive-by killing of Calvin Reed, father of former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice, and was sentenced to four to 20 years. Correctional records cited in court said he was denied parole three times and released in 1999 after seven years. Anderson, 39, whose parents are Jamaican, was shot near midnight Monday in the Wakefield section of the Bronx while heading home from work.

Locally, Brian Nunes, 63, of St. Andrew was charged with allegedly offering police $1,000 not to ticket him. Officers in Arcadia about 8:00 p.m. Friday, July 17, stopped him for driving a Suzuki Swift without a seat belt; he allegedly produced the cash after being told he would be ticketed. A court date is being set.

Maurice Wright, charged with assault occasioning bodily harm over an alleged clash with the mother of his child, was sent to restorative justice after a Tuesday hearing at the Kingston and St. Andrew Parish Court. Judge Peter Wilson heard Wright accept responsibility and cite anger-management problems, ordered him into the process, and warned him against repeating the conduct. Wright is due back November 11, 2026.

Management for late reggae artiste Phantom Moja said Ray Stevens has no authority to speak for the singer, his family or his estate, stating Stevens has had no involvement for nearly four years. Unstoppable Fire and Kerry James remain the authorised representatives. Phantom Moja, born Owen Lenox Monreef, died Tuesday, July 14, 2026. Family and management asked the public to rely on official updates and sought privacy while mourning continues.

In St. Catherine, Senior Superintendent Leighton Gray said two Haitian men were detained after arriving by boat near Bushy Park, Old Harbour, on Thursday. Police, tipped about 8:30 a.m. to a vessel offshore, later found the men hiding in bushes with Haitian passports. Gray said probes continue into reports of a larger group including women and children. Early findings indicated the craft left Haiti bound for the United States, ran into trouble, and the two men had gone ashore seeking food for others still aboard.