36 year old Reita Paige, of Mansfield Heights (also known as Fauklands) in Ocho Rios, St. Ann, appeared in the St. Ann’s Bay Resident Magistrate’s Court yesterday, where she and three of her sons – 18-year-old Odane Smith and two juveniles ages 16 and 14 – faced murder charges in relation to the death of a 17-year-old youth with whom the woman’s daughter was said to have been involved in a relationship.
On July 7, 2010 at approximately 2 a.m., the 17 year old youth (identified as Brian Johnson) reportedly had an argument with Paige’s 14 year old daughter at Johnson’s house in Mansfield Heights. The girl reportedly left and went to her home nearby where she reported the incident to family members. The court heard that Paige and her three sons then armed themselves with a knife and screwdrivers, and went in search of Johnson. He was not seen at his house, but reportedly accosted on a roadway in the community later. It is then alleged that all four attacked Johnson stabbing him multiple times. The blade of the knife reportedly broke in the Johnson’s chest.
When they appeared in court yesterday, Paige and one of her juvenile sons were remanded in custody until August 12. The 14 year old juvenile reportedly has mental problems, and the presiding magistrate ordered that he be assessed by a psychiatrist. He, along with the eldest son (Smith) were each offered bail in the sum of $200,000 with surety. As a condition of their bail, they are to report to the Ocho Rios police on Mondays and Thursdays and a curfew was imposed on them.
The 14 year old girl has since been removed from the home, and sent to a place of safety.
Jamaican-born track & field legend, Merlene Ottey, who became a naturalised citizen of Slovenia in 2002, will make history on July 31 at the European championships, when she competes at the age of 50. Ottey, who has been selected in Slovenia’s 4x100m relay squad for the event (after finishing second in the Slovenian championships), will become the oldest athlete to ever compete at a European Championships. The current record is held by France’s Nicole Brakebusch-Leveque, who was 47 years old when she contested the marathon in the 1998 European Championships
Ottey, won nine Olympic medals while competing for Jamaica at seven Olympic Games. She was 48 years old when she missed out on qualifying for the 2008 Beijing Olympics after failing by 0.28 seconds to attain the qualifying mark in the 100M event. She won her first senior world medal, a bronze, at the Moscow Olympics in 1980 (30 years ago), and has won 29 medals at major competitions, including 14 at the World Championships (more than any other athlete).
Notably also, at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, she became the oldest-ever athletics medallist when she anchored the Jamaican women’s 4x100m relay team to second place.
Things weren’t so pleasant in the quiet rural district of Pleasant Hill in Bog Walk, St. Catherine last night, as gunmen invaded a house in the community and shot five persons. Four of them died, while the fifth person has reportedly been hospitalised in a critical condition.
The dead have been identified as 40-year-old Raymond Williams, Audrey Thomas, 41, Kaneil Parks, 19, and Shereka Clarke, 21 (who was visiting the family). While the police are yet to establish a motive for the quadruple killing, unconfirmed sources indicate that it could have been as a result of a commununity conflict involving money.
Nerval Walker appeared before the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court earlier today, where he was remanded in custody for having unlawful possession of J$200,000 and some foreign currencies. He will remain in jail until July 29, when the matter will be heard once again.
According to the police, on July 7, 2010, a patrol spotted Walker acting suspiciously on Olympic Way in Kingston. He was stopped and searched, and J$201,800 as well as $1000 in Peruvian currency, $100 in Guyanese dollars and $100 in Banga currency were found in a brown bag that was in his possession. When questioned about the origin of the money, Walker allegedly claimed that he had won it at Cash Pot (popular local gambling game), however a check at the Cash pot location where Walker claimed to have won the money, revealed that there was no record of any winnings by him. He was thus arrested and charged for unlawful possession.
Norbert Graham, a 52 year old woodcutter of Shaw Castle in St. James, died in hospital yesterday, after he was reportedly hit by a tree branch at Mount Horeb in St. James. According to reports, Graham was on a farm cutting down a tree, when a branch fell and hit him on the head. He was taken to the Cornwall Regional Hospital where he later died from his injuries.
A recent search of prisoners at the all female Fort Augusta Adult Correctional Facility, reportedly turned up at least five instances where mobile phones were hidden inside the vaginas of prisoners. Unconfirmed reports indicate that the phones were wrapped in tissue and tied in plastic.
According to reports, prison officials introduced new hand held metal detectors that were able to alert them of the possibility of metal objects that were not visible to the naked eye. In these instances, the prisoners in question were taken to the Kingston Public Hospital, where doctors conducted searches and the mobile phones found hidden inside their vaginas.
A man who was wanted by the Christiana police for shooting intent, was reportedly chopped to death by a mob last night in Bronty District, Manchester. A policeman was also injured during the incident.
According to reports, at approximately 7:55 p.m. last night, the man – Omar Levy of Greendale District in Manchester – was spotted in Bronty District, but managed to elude the police. Residents of the area reportedly went in search of him, and when they found him, he was mobbed and chopped. Police officers attempted to rescue him, and one of the policemen was also injured.
Both the injured policeman and Levy were taken to the hospital, where Levy succumbed, and the policeman was treated and released.
14 year old Delano Martin of Greenvale, Manchester, reportedly hung himself on Monday (July 12) after telling his mother that he would hang himself because she had refused to send him to summer school.
According to reports, Martin had told his mother that he wanted to go to summer school. She reportedly told him that he would be going the next day. This is said to have angered the child who reportedly told his mother that he would kill himself if she did not let him go. His mother later found him hanging from a rope on their verandah.
81 year old Enid Beckford was reportedly shot and killed by gunmen at her home in Bamboo district, Burnt Savannah, in Westmoreland yesterday morning, and the police are reportedly probing the possibility that her death is linked to her being granted $1.5 million through a recent court case.
According to reports, residents of the community heard explosions at approximately 3 a.m. and alerted the police. Upon their arrival, the police found the woman’s body with several gunshot wounds. She was rushed to the Savanna-la-mar Hospital where she died.
Tempers reportedly flared at yesterday’s sitting of the St. Ann Parish Council, following an allegation that a member of the council was using the monthly allocation for the maintenance of parochial roads in his division to service a personal loan. People’s National Party councillor for the Beecher Town Division, Ian Bell, made the allegation while making reference to a request that he had made earlier for $100,000 to implement a flood-mitigation programme in his division.
According to Bell, the councillors were informed several months ago (during a meeting with council officials), that the accused councillor was using the monthly allocation to pay for a personal car loan. Bell said that nothing has been done to deal with the allegation.
