Bedward Gdns still tense after killings
Published:Monday | January 10, 2011 | 12:00 AM
Nedburn Thaffe, Gleaner Writer
Nearly one month after the early morning killing of three people in Bedward Gardens, August Town, St Andrew, the community remains on edge.
However, at least one community peacekeeper has been working overtime to derail the prospect of reprisal and put an end to the bloodletting that has stained the community for decades.
Last month, six-year-old Jaheem McKay; his mother, 31-year-old Dania Forbes, and 49-year-old taxi operator Marnis Hylton were shot and killed and their house set ablaze as they slept in their beds in the Alley Four area of the community.
Since then, the police have linked the triple killing to the infamous Dog Paw gang. Last Thursday, two men suspected of being among the gang of 30 who invaded the community were charged after they were pointed out during an identification parade.
A $250,000 bounty for information leading to the capture of alleged gang leader Christopher 'Dog Paw' Linton was put out weeks before the triple killing in the community.
Working for peace
Yesterday, head of the August Town Transformation initiative, Kenneth Wilson, while acknow-ledging the looming tension, said the initiative which he heads is working to quell the tension in the community and bring the community to a state of normality.
"We are putting things in place. We have a project working on, and over the next few weeks, we will be conducting workshops with the five (troubled) areas in August Town to try and promote greater integration," he said, adding that a number of sporting activities have also been planned.
In the meantime, Wilson is calling for for more cooperation from the police, adding that residents are still incensed, believing the triple killing could could have been prevented had the police taken the necessary measures to do so.
"Every time we have the sand mining going on in the area, something like this happen," he said, pointing to an incident in the community where a man was killed about a week prior to the triple murder.