15 murders since August 1

KINGSTON – The police have reported that 15 people have been killed in the first 11 days of this month.The last two reported murders were that of Pearnel and Damion Watson, two employees of Phillips and Sons Funeral Home. The men were found with gunshot wounds to their heads.Their hands were also bound.The two were among six people who were murdered on Tuesday. One murder was reported on Monday. Police statistics indicate that eight murders were committed during the first eight days of the month. Murder statistics spiralled out of control during the first five months of the year as the country seemed on course to record more murders than last year’s record 1680. Since the imposition of a State of Emergency on May 23 after bands of thugs launched an attack on the state in defence of former Tivoli Gardens area don Christopher “Dudus” Coke, murders have declined drastically. The State of Emergency ended in late July after Opposition parliamentarians abstained to vote for or against Prime Minister Golding’s request for a 30-day extension. (Jamaica Observer)