TEN PERSONS were killed within a 36-hour period over the weekend, bringing murders since the start of the year to 605, four more than the number recorded during the same period last year.
The Constabulary Communication Network said that up to Thursday, August 21, police statistics showed that major crimes such as shootings had increased by 28 to 743 since the start of the year; rapes had increased by 38 to 616 from 578 during the same period last year, and carnal abuse cases had increased by 46 to 248.
However, there has been a significant decrease in robberies as there were 1,057 cases compared to 1,359 during the same period last year. There were also far fewer break-ins with a 246-case decrease from 1,166. Larceny was down to 144 from 208 last year.
Eight of the 10 persons killed on the weekend were shot in separate incidents which occurred from Friday morning to Saturday afternoon. The other two were chopped to death.
Those killed were identified as: Christopher Ebanks, 27, of New Haven, Kingston 20; Gregory Daniels, 47, welder of Eaton district, Hanover; Sean Stockhousen, 32, also called 'Parro Man', of Ebony Road, Olympic Gardens, Kingston 11; Ewart Poorman, 48, manager of Apollo Taxi Service; Theophelus Adman, 22, of Espeut Avenue, and Mark Johnson, 21, of Guava Road, both in Kingston 11; Simon Spencer, 24, fisherman of Seven Miles, Bull Bay; Althea Hinds, of Balcombe Drive, Kingston 11; Conrad Campbell, 28, also called 'Ritchie', of Craig Town, Kingston 12; and a man identified only as 'Ritchie Poo'.
The CCN reported that about 7:50 a.m. on Friday, explosions were heard in the vicinity of Wordsworth Avenue, New Haven, where the police later found the bullet-riddled body of Ebanks.
Police found Daniels's body with machete wounds on Friday night in bushes near his home in Hanover after a female companion reported an attack by two men with machetes.
Poorman, the taxi service manager, was shot dead by gunmen on Retirement Crescent, St. Andrew, on Friday night.
Also on Friday night, Stockhousen was shot dead by unknown assailants in the Olympic Gardens commu-nity. Adman and Johnson were killed in the Kingston 11 area on Friday night. Residents called the police after
hearing explosions in the Waltham Park Road area. Adman was found with gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the Kingston Public Hospital.
Johnson's body was found by police, about two hours later, lying in an open area in the White Wing area of Olympic Gardens. He also suffered multiple gunshot wounds.
Spencer's body was found with gunshot wounds at a house in Pondside, Yallahs, St. Thomas, on Saturday morning.
Police said Hinds was shot dead by her husband, Garfield Hinds, on Saturday morning. He then killed himself.
Campbell was chopped to death on Saturday after he and two others were attacked by a group of men with machetes.
'Ritchie Poo' was shot dead by a gunman on East Kings House Road on Saturday evening.
