PORUS, Manchester:
THE CLARENDON police are now processing forensic and physical evidence, chief among them a video tape, as they step up their search for five men who were involved in a robbery attempt and shooting incidents at the Western Union Store in Four Paths Clarendon on Friday.
The lawmen also have in their possession a bloodstained shirt believed to be that of one of the gunmen and several finger prints found on the abandoned Toyota Corolla motor car in which they were travelling, according to police sources.
About 11 a.m. on Friday four men reportedly approached the cashier at the store and demanded money. A security guard intervened and was robbed of his billfold with $4,000. When a second security guard challenged the men, they reportedly opened fire which was returned by the security officer. A bullet was also fired at their waiting motor vehicle.
It is believed that the driver who was in the vehicle at the time was struck by the bullet, as bloodstains were later discovered on the driver's seat. The men who then made their escape in the vehicle fired a shot as they sped past the nearby Four Path Police Station hitting a civilian in his buttocks. Police reports are that the civilian went to the station to visit a police officer. Upon hearing gunshots being fired he reportedly went outside and on returning inside the station he was hit by the bullet.
The gunmen later abandoned the vehicle with a punctured wheel and made their escape into a cane field where they encountered a farmer. They reportedly attempted to rob him of his vehicle when the farmer, a licensed firearm holder, shot at them. According to reports the gunmen returned the fire. It is believed that at least one of them were shot, police sources say.
A large detachment of police officers including members of the Crime Management Unit, the Area III Flying Squad and soldiers from the Jamaica Defence Force have been combing the area since Friday. Investigations have also revealed that the motor vehicle which was used in the incident was stolen in Spalding, Clarendon the night before the incident. The men tinted the vehicle and changed the license plate before embarking on their robbery mission.
