Howard Campbell, Gleaner Writer
THREE SOUTH St. Andrew area leaders remained in police custody for a third night yesterday as law enforcement officers continued investigations into their alleged involvement in gang fighting in the constituency.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mark Shields, said that the men - brothers George and Andrew Phang and Patrick Roberts - were scheduled to be interrogated late yesterday afternoon by a team led by Superintendent Cornwall Ford.
"Based on what information Superintendent Ford gives us we will decide whether to charge them or release them," DCP Shields told The Gleaner.
He declined to say where the men were being held.
Attorney-at-law K. Churchill Neita, who is representing George Phang, would not comment on his next move. However, he said the Phangs and Mr. Roberts were not being held illegally as Jamaican law permits persons to be held in custody for an unspecified period.
CALM AFTER 'ARRESTS'
DCP Shields noted that since the men were detained by a team from the Flying Squad on Monday, there has been a 'significant decrease' in hostilities in the communities of Arnett Gardens, Craig Town and Jones Town.
"This may be a coincidence, but the last 48 hours have been relatively calm," said DCP Shields.
Three persons were murdered in South St. Andrew on Christmas Eve. DCP Shields said on Tuesday, a police party headed by Superintendent Delroy Hewitt of the Kingston West police division was fired on by gunmen as they patrolled Rodney and Benbow streets.
Locals said the Phang brothers who are from Jones Town have been at odds for months with Roberts who has roots in nearby Craig Town, talks Mr. Roberts has denied.
Both George Phang and Roberts are executives of the Arnett Gardens Football Club and have ties to the music industry. Mr. Roberts is a director of the Shocking Vibes Productions organisation which manages several dancehall acts including Grammy winner Beenie Man.
It is the second time that both George Phang and Roberts are being questioned by the police in connection with violence in the constituency. In June 2004, police seized Mr. Roberts' licensed firearm for ballistics tests; that month, Mr. Phang was detained for questioning.
Police statistics show that gang warfare in the South St. Andrew constituency of Finance and Planning Minister Dr. Omar Davies, has accounted for nearly 50 deaths there in the past three months.
