By Glenroy Sinclair, Staff ReporterTHE SMALL and quiet farming village of Jeffery Town, western St. Mary, erupted in mourning early yesterday morning, after one of their own, a 33-year-old policeman, was shot and killed at a bar in the district by gunmen.
"The residents, especially those we saw in the Gayle district, were distraught," Superintendent Wilford Gayle, Area Two crime officer, told The Gleaneryesterday.
Reports are that Constable Howard Hardial, who enlisted in the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) three years ago, was on departmental leave at the time of his death. He was attached to the Special Anti-Crime Task Force (SACTF).
The lawman, who became the eighth member of the JCF to have been killed by gunmen since January, was among a group of persons including two Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) soldiers who were playing a game of dominoes when the gunmen struck.
MEN POSING AS POLICE
Allegations are that shortly before 1:00 a.m., a number of men posing as policemen entered the establishment. The men, who were attired in blue denim, began searching patrons at the bar.
The constable, who was observing what was happening, went over and identified himself as a member of the SACTF. The two soldiers kept a cool head and refrained from identifying themselves.
After robbing the patrons of cash and jewellery, one of the gunmen then called Mr. Hardial outside where he shot him in the abdomen. The gunmen escaped in a white Toyota Camry motor car, which they reportedly used to commit a series of robberies across St. Mary and St. Ann.
In a public statement yesterday, Police Commissioner Francis Forbes said the incident re-emphasised the need for the police and citizens to work together and be proactive in garnering information to incarcerate gunmen, before they "obliterate the decent, hardworking people in the society."
RUTHLESS KILLING
The Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file members of the police force, said when its members are ruthlessly gunned down in the manner such as Constable Hardial, it is a "direct attack upon the rule of law."
Constable Hardial's death brings to 1,010, the number of persons murdered in Jamaica since the start of the year. This is 35 more than the 975 killed in 2003, with more than three months still to go in the year.
