Police believe St Andrew attack was a reprisal
Published:Monday | December 6, 2010 | 12:00 AM
Nadisha Hunter, Gleaner Writer
The St Andrew Police Division is not ruling out yesterday's shooting attack on a police team in Bedward Gardens, St Andrew, as retaliation for a clampdown on an alleged lucrative illegal sand-mining operation near the Hope River.
The gun attack has been linked by the cops to hoodlums affiliated with alleged gangster Christopher Linton, known as 'Dog Paw', who has eluded police dragnets for months.
Commander of the St Andrew Central Division, Superintendent Derrick Knight, told The Gleaner that while there was no concrete evidence that the shooting was linked to the police crackdown, that possibility was being probed.
"It is fuelling some of the gang activities up there. The men are using the money to finance their activities, including buying ammunition," said Knight, who is widely known as 'Cowboy'.
Mining stoppage
Knight disclosed that the police have temporarily stopped the legal mining of sand in the area to work out security strategies.
"We have stopped it to get to the contractors, so we can sit down and (craft) a strategic plan to deal with what is happening out there," he added.
Yesterday's ambush unfolded about 8:30 a.m. after sleuths from the Half-Way Tree Police Station went to the area to carry out an operation when they spotted a man carrying a bag.
When when the police approached the man, he reportedly pulled a handgun and started firing at them.
The police said Dog Paw's gangsters joined in the shooting, forcing the cops to seek cover.
When The Gleaner visited the area, crime-scene investigators were busy processing the location where the shooting occurred, while several residents watched as a Jamaica Defence Force helicopter hovered over bushes in search of the gunmen.
The police could not confirm if any of the gunmen had sustained injuries, but Knight made a desperate plea for Linton to surrender.
"We want Dog Paw to come in because the police have an interest in him for not only the sand mining, but in terms of extortion, shootings and murders that are happening in that area," Knight said.