Fri | Oct 17, 2025

Bloody start to 2025 as Jamaica records 34 murders in 11 days

Published:Monday | January 13, 2025 | 11:15 AM
The latest crime data show that 14 of the 19 police divisions have recorded at least one murder since the start of the year.

Jamaica has seen a bloody start to 2025, with 34 murders recorded in 11 days, according to the latest serious crime statistics published on Sunday by the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).

This is eight more murders than was recorded for the similar period last year. After the first 11 days in 2024, the country recorded 26 murders.

Last year ended with 1,139 murders or a 19 per cent decline when compared to the previous year.

For the first four days this year, January 1-4, the country recorded five murders, however, in the first full week, January 5-11, 29 murders were recorded.

This has since prompted the JCF to impose 48-hour curfews in the entire Kingston Western, St Andrew Central, St Andrew South and St Catherine South divisions.

The latest crime data show that 14 of the 19 police divisions have recorded at least one murder since the start of the year.

The divisions with the most homicides are St Catherine South, with five; St Andrew South, five; Kingston West, four; St Andrew central, four; and St Mary, three.

On January 8, 2025, the community of Central Village in St Catherine South recorded a triple murder.

It is reported that about 9:45 p.m., gunmen armed with high powered weapons invaded a home in McBride Hill and killed three men.

The deceased are Matthew Smith and brothers, 22-year-old Jaheem 'JJ' Ferguson and Giovanni 'Gio' Ferguson.

Investigations are ongoing in that incident.

The police divisions without a murder since the start of the year are Trelawny, Portland, St Elizabeth, Manchester and Kingston Central.

Shootings, injured persons, rapes, robberies and break-ins are down year on year.

- Andre Williams

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