Two Constables and Correctional Officer Charged in Separate Assault Cases

Two police constables and a correctional officer have been charged following investigations by the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) into three separate allegations of assault.

INDECOM said in a release on Wednesday that the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions reviewed the investigations and ruled that charges should be brought. The officers appeared in court between September 22 and 25.

Constable Omari Gooden appeared before the St Catherine Parish Court on September 22, charged with unlawful wounding under the Offences Against the Person Act.

His case concerns an alleged assault on a male civilian along Burke Road in St Catherine on July 30, 2020. The complainant alleged that a dispute over damage to a vehicle led to a physical confrontation in which he suffered injuries to his lip, neck and right flank.

Police also charged the complainant in connection with the incident. After mediation failed to resolve the matter, the parties were ordered to return to court on November 13 for case management.

Correctional Officer Tyrone Palmer appeared by summons before the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court on September 23 on a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Palmer is accused of assaulting a man held at the Horizon Adult Remand Centre on July 24, 2025. According to INDECOM, the allegation concerns force used against the detainee after contraband was discovered and seized.

Medical evidence indicated that the complainant suffered a rupture to the central portion of his left eardrum, which later healed. Palmer’s case is scheduled to return to court on November 24.

In the third matter, Constable Akino Pennycooke appeared before the St Catherine Parish Court on September 25, charged with unlawful wounding.

INDECOM said Pennycooke was off duty when the alleged assault took place at a residence in Portmore, St Catherine, on December 22, 2025. Medical reports documented lacerations, including one that required sutures.

The matter is set to return to court on November 6.

The three cases bring to 18 the number of law enforcement officers charged in 2026 following INDECOM investigations. The total includes 16 JCF members, one of whom is a former constable, and two correctional officers. The investigations concern fatal shootings and assaults.

Sentencing of Constable Patrick Walters Rescheduled for October 2

Constable Patrick Walters is scheduled to be sentenced in the Home Circuit Court on Friday, October 2, after his September 25 sentencing date was postponed.

Walters pleaded guilty to manslaughter and using a firearm to commit a felony in connection with the fatal shooting of 20-year-old D’Jonnay Graham.

Graham was shot on June 25, 2025, in Essex District, Richmond, St Mary.

The Independent Commission of Investigations investigated the shooting and submitted its findings to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

On July 17, 2025, the ODPP directed that Walters be charged.

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