UP TO yesterday, 166 people had been murdered in Jamaica in the 74 days since January 1, 2001, with another 37 being shot dead by the security forces in separate incidents, police records show.
The latest victim, a 20-year-old man, was gunned down yesterday in a mid-morning attack in a section of Arnett Gardens, South St. Andrew, commonly called "Zimbabwe".
According to the police, at about 9 o'clock, Maurice Simms, nicknamed "Skillyboo", was walking across an open lot between Ninth and Tenth streets, when three men shot him several times. He died on the spot.
According to the police, Simms' death has been linked to an ongoing gang feud in that section of Arnett Gardens, which has claimed the lives of eight persons in the last 12 weeks.
The gun has been used in 103 of the 166 murders; this is followed by the knife which claimed 34 lives, and the machete which was used to kill nine people. Police records state that 60 of those slain were victims of reprisal killings. Domestic disputes were responsible for another 53, robbery, for 17, and drug/gang related incidents for 14.
Deputy Supt. James Forbes, of the Constabulary Communi-cation Network, in an address at the official launch of the 2001 Inter Prep/Primary Schools Debating Competition on Wednesday at the National Commercial Bank Sports Club in Kingston, said that between 1995 and 1999, youngsters between the ages of 12 and 19 years, were responsible for committing 4,115 major crimes, ranging from robbery to murder.
In the same period, 34 young people between the ages of 12 and 15 years were charged with murder, 39 with shooting, 139 with rape, and 220 with robbery.
In some instances, teenagers were arrested for multiple offences. According to the police, crime review for 2000, a total of 86 youngsters from 13 to 18 years were charged with murder, another 140 with shooting, 189 with robbery, 100 with rape, 74 with carnal abuse.
Early on Wednesday morning, seven youth between 15 and 20 years were killed by the police in Braeton, St. Catherine, in what they reported as a shoot-out.
