CLARENDON:
THE HUMBLE dwelling which once housed the elderly couple, Irene and Balford Thompson, stood desolate on Monday, as if mourning the untimely death of its occupants.
The usually quiet community of Banbury, near Linstead, St. Catherine, is still in shock after Saturday's brutal slaying of two of its oldest citizens, a couple loved and respected by the community.
According to a report from the Constabulary Communication Network(CCN), on Saturday afternoon, members of their church went to visit the couple at their home. On their arrival, they reportedly found their bodies lying on a bed with stab wounds to the neck. Mrs. Thompson was last seen alive at about 10 that morning. The Linstead police, who are investigating, are yet to detect a motive.
When The Gleaner visited the community on Monday, the question "why?" was evident on the faces of the residents.
"They were a nice set of people, very co-operative, so willing to help out and visited church very often. The community people loved them so much, they were so quiet," Vinette Campbell, a nurse aid from the Linstead Health Centre recalled.
Mrs. Campbell, who has been caring for the Thompsons for over 12 years, has still not come to terms with the death of the couple. "I was in St. Ann at my mother's home when my husband called and told me. Mi seh, Lawd God, why dem kill di nice people dem?"
"Even today at work, I don't do anything because every suh mi fi work mi mind rest on them, mi can't function right now," she told the Gleaner.
Mrs. Campbell said she met both Irene and Balford at the health centre, through their regular visits for check ups, as they suffered from hypertension.
"When I visit (every other week) I always tell them how to take their medication. I would monitor the medication for them."
Seventy-six-year-old Enid Sullivan is now suffering a nervous breakdown after discovering the bodies of the elderly couple. Because of her ailment, Miss Sullivan, who was dressed in a night gown and a head-tie, chose not to revisit the horrible scene, but managed to explain that her church sister was found with her mouth open and an arm stretched upright.
Miss Sullivan made the discovery after her curiosity got the better of her, as to why Mrs. Thompson did not attend church on Saturday morning.
"Mrs. Thompson would be in church, because she goes to church every Saturday, the rain must be pouring or something (for her not to attend)," Mrs. Campbell asserted.
The bodies of the elderly couple were found stabbed to death at about 6:30 p.m. on Saturday at their home, according to the Linstead police.
Another elderly resident, "Miss Norma", a neighbour of the Thompsons, shook her head in grief over the untimely death of her neighbours. "Miss Norma" said that the death of the Thompsons came as a surprise.
Over the years Mrs. Thompson, whose husband was bedridden, has been a major figure in the congregation of the Banbury Seventh Day Adventist Church. According to residents, Mrs. Thompson is the sole breadwinner and sells coal occasionally. The couple had no children.
"Miss Norma," who operates a grocery shop, says she will miss the frequent visits from Mrs. Thompson, who last visited on Christmas day. She pointed out that her church sister has been attending church long before she became a member. She noted that Mr. Thompson was a Deacon in the church in Linstead before he got ill.
The grief has also spread to the young people in the community, some of whom described the killing as "heartless."
"Di man dem weh do dat heartless," echoed a young man. Another young lady in remembering the couple said, "When yuh pass di house yuh hear them reading dem bible, or something, or yuh si Miss Thompson looking after her husband."
At the Linstead Health Centre, Campbell noted that the space on the roster of those attending hypertension clinic will now
be empty.
