Man charged for 2020 Hanover triple murder

BRYAN ‘NOT Nice’Jackson of Green Island, Hanover, was on Tuesday charged for a triple murder, among other offences, in relation to the killing of three men in the parish, whose skeletal remains were retrieved from a 40-foot-deep sinkhole in Phoenix Town district, also in Hanover, last May.

“We concluded our investigations into the matter and we have charged Jackson for the triple murder, robbery with aggravation, wounding, and illegal possession of firearm and ammunition,” Superintendent Sharon Beeput, the police commander for Hanover, told The Gleaner. “While it took us some time to put the case together, this man will now have his day in court.”

According to reports, on the night of April 22, 2020, the deceased men, Juvane ‘Indian’ Anderson, Chescott ‘Chris’ Douglas, Sean Russell, and another man went into the Green Island community, also in Hanover, where they made an arrangement to purchase a motorcycle.

On entering a section of the community, they came under heavy gunfire from men who were seemingly waiting in ambush. Following the shooting, three of the men were reported missing as no bodies were found. The fourth man managed to escape.

MISSING MEN FOUND DEAD

“In May (last year), acting on information, we carried out a search in Phoenix Town, where we uncovered a cave from which a foul scent was coming,” said Beeput. “Because of the difficulty we had accessing the cave, we sought the help of the fire brigade. When they managed to get into the cave, they found the skeletal remains which were subsequently identified as the missing men.”

Following further investigations, Beeput said Jackson was taken into custody. After question-and-answer sessions and further probes, including the use of circumstantial evidence, he was charged yesterday.

And, as the Hanover police continue their relentless bid to clear up shooting and murder cases in the parish, another man, identified as Vasco ‘Ritchie’ Bowen of Brissett district in the parish, was also slapped with a double-murder charge and three counts of wounding yesterday, for an incident in Mt Pleasant, Kingsvale, on May 6, 2021.

According to police reports, one the night of the incident, gunmen invaded a section of the Kingvale community firing multiple shots. When the shooting ended, it was discovered that 29-year-old Aaron Melbourne and 18-year-old Bagho Anthony Salmon, both of Gulf in Norwood, St James, were dead.

“These men (the deceased), for reasons unknown, ended up in the Kingsvale area and were seemingly targeted in the attack,” said Beeput. “We have been having quite a few cases of men coming into the parish and getting involved in shootings and murders.”

Regarding last week’s double murder in the Logwood community, Beeput said one suspect has been taken into custody and is currently being questioned. In that incident, 39-year-old bartender Kenton Roosevelt and 16-year-old Rodray Martinez were killed.