Cops probe shooting at Nationwide parking lot

There has been a chorus of condemnations after a shooting incident at the Bradley Avenue, St Andrew offices of Nationwide News Network (NNN) on Friday afternoon.

No one was injured in the shooting, which was reportedly carried out by a lone gunman on a motorcycle in the parking lot about 4:30 p.m.

Up to press time last night, the cause of the shooting remained unclear and the police’s Corporate Communication Network said it had not received an official report on the incident which left staff at the entity shaken.

Images circulated in the aftermath showed a motor car in the parking lot with bullet holes and shattered glass.

“We are not going to be intimidated. We’re not going to be distracted from our job. Our job is to report, assess, comment on the affairs of Lady Jamaica, and no, no lunatic is going to have us not do so,” NNN CEO Cliff Hughes said in the wake of the shooting.

The Press Association of Jamaica (PAJ) also denounced the “vile act”, saying that such incidents threaten the fundamental principles of press freedom.

PAJ President Milton Walker said that the incident would not deter journalists from their duty to inform the public and ensure that the truth prevails.

In a release, the The Media Association Jamaica Limited also said it was shocked and disgusted by the incident.

“Regardless of motivation, the potential intimidatory effect on journalists carrying out their work on behalf of the public is a sad reality for this nation to deal with. We media houses stand strong and resolute with Nationwide and its employees in the face of intimidation, defending our right to transparency and unfettered access to report on issues of national importance. We call on the nation to do the same,” it said.

The Government and Opposition also deplored the shooting.

“The Government restates its commitment and support to a free press which should not be intimidated in any way,” the Government said, while the Opposition called for a swift investigation as it decried “alarmingly high levels of violence and crime in Jamaica”.

The police are continuing their investigations.