Three Dead, Several Wounded in Spanish Town Gang Feud

Last night, sections of St. Catherine were under curfew as security forces responded to an attack by gunmen who invaded sections of Spanish Town on Tuesday afternoon, murdering three people and injuring several others.

Authorities say the attacks have now been linked to “intra-gang conflicts” within the One Order gang, which has flared up in the area in recent weeks.

A sequence of shootings on Tuesday, in areas alleged to be controlled by the One Order gang, erupted into a running gun battle between criminals in the market district and a fiery assault on the historic Spanish Town Courthouse in the Old Capital, which firefighters fought to contain. Investigations are underway to determine those responsible for starting that blaze.

According to police sources, the violence stems from disputes over the distribution of extortion proceeds. Among the fatalities is a man identified only as “Mackerel“, while a number of people are being treated at Spanish Town Hospital.

The One Order gang, which has a long history of feuding with the Klansman gang, is based in Spanish Town’s Tawes Pen community and controls the Ellerslie Pen, Dempshire Pen, Gordon Pen, Shelter Rock, Homestead, and Chambers Lane communities.

According to authorities, investigations are still underway to identify the people responsible for recent murders and shootings, including a quadruple murder last week in the Railway Lane area near Tawes Pen.

Meanwhile, there has been infighting inside the One Don gang, with three men being shot on Saturday evening in the Jones Avenue neighborhood, where the gang’s headquarters is located.

In the incident, the lone fatality was an alleged gang member known as “Red Paul”, whose name has been mentioned multiple times throughout the ongoing prosecution of more than 24 alleged faction members.

The police say they are also examining whether any of the five men recently released after the State’s case against them collapsed were responsible for the recent disruption in the area.

Authorities also stated that a planned operation resulted in the arrest of a former gang trial defendant in Dam Head on Tuesday. He was allegedly arrested while in possession of an illegal firearm. A subsequent police operation resulted in the seizure of a second firearm, which the police believe is also linked to the former accused man.

The man, along with four other men, had been charged with being a member of a criminal organisation. He had also been charged with allegedly planning to murder an individual known as “Wee Wee” in 2015, as well as, a November 2017 murder at a tyre shop in the parish.

The trial, which began with 33  individuals, is now down to 28, including alleged leader Andre “Blackman” Bryan. The defendants face charges under anti-gang legislation as well as the Firearms Act.