37 people killed over 14 days, homicides down 26%

Jamaica recorded 19 murders during the week of February 8 to 14 — the highest weekly homicide total since the start of the year — according to the latest serious crime statistics from the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).

The figure closely follows the previous week, February 1 to 7, during which 18 people were killed, bringing the total number of murders over the 14-day period to 37.

That two-week figure has already surpassed the total for the entire month of January, when 33 people were killed.

Despite the recent spike, the country’s overall murder tally stood at 70 as at February 14, representing a 26 per cent decline year on year.

At the end of January, murders were down by 55 per cent, indicating that nearly 29 per cent of that reduction has been eroded over the past two weeks amid consecutive weeks of double-digit killings.

Major crimes overall, however, remain down by 25 per cent.

The St Andrew South Police Division currently leads the country in murders, with 10 homicides recorded so far this year, making it the only division in double digits.

It is followed by St James with nine murders; St Elizabeth with six; and Manchester and Clarendon with five each, rounding out the top five.

The Kingston Central and St Andrew North police divisions remain the only two of the island’s 19 divisions without a recorded murder.

As at February 14, shootings, persons injured, rape, robbery, and break-ins have all declined year on year.

The bloodshed last week included Thursday’s double murder in Bayshore Park, Kingston, on February 12, adding to mounting concerns about flare-ups of violence in specific communities.

The week also saw separate homicides in the St Mary Police Division on February 9 and the killing of Jamaica Defence Force private Daniel Crawford on February 10 on Stephen Lane, off Waltham Park Road.

Women and children were also among the victims of violence, with approximately six females murdered during the period under review, including four-year-old Saniyah O’Brien, who was killed in Mandeville on February 8.

In his weekly “Commissioner’s Corner” column posted on the JCF website, Commissioner of Police Dr Kevin Blake cautioned that the force’s statistical progress must not overshadow the human toll of violent crime.

“Statistical progress does not diminish the human cost of violence,” he stated, underscoring what he described as a long-standing principle within the organisation that every incident must be critically examined, particularly where offenders exploit perceived vulnerabilities.

He acknowledged that while the JCF continues to advance its crime reduction strategies, there have been several instances of multiple shootings and murders over the past two weeks.

“We will not allow these hoodlums and their sympathisers to shift the needle of progress even a bit, so let us continue on our mission with laser focus and steel determination,” the commissioner wrote in addressing members of the force.

Despite the recent surge, police maintain that overall major crimes remain significantly lower than last year, even as investigators intensify efforts in the divisions most affected by the recent wave of killings.

- Andre Williams

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