Glenroy Sinclair, Assignment Coordinator

Shell-shocked. That's the best way to describe the reaction of Commandant Osmond Bromfield, head of the Island Special Constabulary Force (ISCF), on learning of the death of Special Corporal Charles Gordon yesterday.

Corporal Gordon, who was shot by a lone gunman while on beat duty in downtown Kingston on Friday, January 5, and who had been hospitalised in intensive care since, succumbed to his injuries yesterday.

His death has pushed the country's murder toll to at least 72 since the start of the year, including three members of the police force. The other two policemen, Sergeant Huan Genius, 52, and Constable Ralston Ebanks, 38, were killed in separate incidents on January 2.

Killed on duty

"Since I became commandant, we (ISCF) have had a few deaths, but Corporal Gordon is the first officer to have been killed in his uniform, while on duty. Right now, I am really feeling down," said Mr. Bromfield, who also described the deceased as a good worker.

Originally from St. Ann, Corporal Gordon enlisted in the ISCF on June 23, 2003. At the time of his death, the 37-year-old policeman was in the process of prosecuting a motorist, near the intersection of King and Barry streets, when an unidentified man rode up on a bicycle and shot him several times.

According to a senior investigator, when Corporal Gordon fell to the ground, his killer stood over him and pumped at least two more bullets into his body. Preliminary investigations suggest that this could be the second member of the ISCF that this particular gunman has killed.

It is alleged that the killer could also be responsible for the death of Special Constable Michael Hamilton, who died on December 14, after being hospitalised for two months. He was shot during a robbery attempt, at a service station on Half-Way Tree Road, Kingston. One of the robbers, Jermaine Johnson, was killed during the gunfight.