Cops nab murder suspect wanted in St Lucia
Published:Wednesday | July 14, 2021 | 12:06 AMGareth Davis Sr/Gleaner Writer
BUFF BAY, Portland:
A murder suspect who fled St Lucia after allegedly killing a man was captured in Portland by the police during a raid conducted on Sunday in Buff Bay.
Police authorities in St Lucia have revealed that 27-year-old Jamaican national, Orville Purnell, who staged a daring escape while in lock-up in that country on October 12 last year, was wanted for the shooting death of 28-year-old Claytos Alfred.
Investigators said that Alfred was gunned down on or about August 24 and that his body was found a day later by an early-morning jogger.
St Lucian authorities have since revealed that Purnell is the prime suspect in the shooting death of Alfred.
According to a news update from NBC Prime in St Lucia, Purnell reportedly used a sharp instrument to cut through steel bars and miraculously made his escape from a cell, which he shared with three other detainees in October last year.
The Portland police have confirmed that a suspect wanted in St Lucia was picked up by them, but investigators were reluctant to release the identity of the man due to what they claimed are security reasons.
Purnell was reportedly hiding in Buff Bay after fleeing St Lucia following his escape.
Buff Bay has been under the police radar following a series of shooting deaths and armed robberies that have been plaguing Portland, which is regarded as the most crime-free parish in Jamaica.