Killed defending friend’s honour?

A relative of Jerdene Grant, the 26-year-old woman who was stabbed to death during an alleged altercation with another woman in Spalding, Clarendon on Friday, says the public's view of her cousin's death is hurting the grieving family.

Reports from the Spalding Police are that at about 2:15 pm, Grant, who was armed with a knife, pounced upon the other woman as she was walking along the roadway. A tussle ensued and Grant was subsequently stabbed in the upper body.

The Police were alerted and upon arrival, Grant was transported to the hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Kenya Grant told The Gleaner that the family's grief is compounded by the fact that Jerdene's daughter is celebrating her seventh birthday today. Kenya added that the celebratory mood in the family has also been dampened, despite her getting married last night.

According to Kenya, the dispute which claimed the life of her cousin stemmed from a love triangle. She said, however, the man at the centre of the dispute is the boyfriend of Jerdene's friend.

"It's over a man, but it's not Jerdene's man. Jerdene got pulled in it like a bait. She's my relative, but it's so dumb. It's one of the dumbest ways to die. This nuh have nutten fi do with her, and she lost her life because of this," said Kenya, adding that her cousin had "followed bad company."

"It's not Jerdene's battle. She's not fighting over a man for herself. Jerdene Grant is friends with another female who is at war with the suspect, which is an ongoing fight. She's a third party in the fight.

“(On Thursday) the person who killed Jerdene Grant beat up Jerdene's friend, so what the friend did was bring Jerdene in it the next day, which was yesterday (Friday). Jerdene is wrong, she shouldn't have gone to the place but she got pulled into the fight," Kenya told The Gleaner.

Kenya has also challenged the Police's report that Jerdene was armed with a knife. She alleges that Jerdene's friend had called the suspect, indicating that they were at her home for revenge.

"Jerdene never had a knife. The suspect had a knife. The suspect allegedly purchased a knife, because Jerdene's friend called her, and told her that they were at her home. They actually waited at the suspect's home for her, so she (the suspect) left work early to go home," claimed Kenya.

Kenya says despite the grief as the family grapples with news of her cousin's tragic and untimely death, Jerdene is also culpable of blame in her demise.

"She's already dead, but I would give her two slaps. To be very honest, I don’t even blame the suspect. She could have taken a different approach, but Jerdene's friend pulled Jerdene into it, and the friend aggravated the situation. I have to be fair.

“She pulled Jerdene into her battle that she lost the day before then run left Jerdene," said Kenya, further claiming that her cousin was attacked by more than one woman.

Kenya said Jerdene had plans to bask in the usual Christmas Eve festivities today, having already purchased outfits for herself and her daughter, and had done extra shopping for her daughter's birthday today.

– Olivia Brown

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