US warship visit, FLA ammunition report and Granville murder charge lead Jamaica news roundup

A United States warship’s stop in Kingston, fresh controversy at the Firearm Licensing Authority, and a murder charge against a policeman over the shooting of Latoya “Buju” Bulgin in Granville, St James, were among the major developments in Jamaica this week.

Foreign Affairs Minister Kamina Johnson Smith rejected claims that the visit by the USS Nimitz signalled Jamaica was being used to support possible US action against Cuba, saying the five-day stop was part of routine maritime cooperation and goodwill. Former CARICOM Assistant Secretary General Ambassador Byron Blake disagreed, arguing that the timing, against the backdrop of heightened US pressure on Havana, could not be ignored. Information Minister Dr Dana Morris Dixon said the visit included community, school and education activities. The US later imposed sanctions on Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and affiliated individuals and entities, while Jamaica said it had arranged higher and earlier stipend payments for Jamaican students in Cuba.

The FLA indicated it would end its court fight against an Integrity Commission report which found its database had been altered to show false ammunition purchases, including one recorded in the name of a man who had died 25 days earlier. The report, tabled Tuesday, said investigators could not identify who ordered the entries because email evidence was lost after a server crash. The agency rejected the findings, while the People’s National Party called for Chief Executive Officer Shane Dalling to resign. National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang defended Dalling and said no firearms or ammunition were found missing from the FLA armoury.

At Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, former University Hospital of the West Indies CEO Kevin Allen denied signing customs documents dated after he left the institution in 2022. The hospital board has referred the matter to the police fraud squad. Lawmakers also questioned records surrounding former board chairman Wayne Chai Chong’s claim that Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton interfered in a CEO appointment, an allegation Tufton has denied.

Constable Andrew Wilson was charged with murder after the May 17 shooting death of Bulgin during a protest in Granville. He was denied bail and remanded until June 16.

Other national stories included $57 billion in unspent capital works funds flagged by the Independent Fiscal Commission, confusion over a phased 16 per cent public passenger fare increase, a settlement among relatives of late Sandals founder Gordon “Butch” Stewart, and Diana McCaulay’s £10,000 Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Prize win for A House for Miss Pauline.