KINGSTON, Jamaica — Two people, including a U.S. citizen, were fatally shot and a third person was wounded during a shooting that erupted when police confronted gunmen who were trying to rob a business in a coastal town in western Jamaica, authorities said Sunday.
Police did not release the American man’s identity.
The Jamaica Observer said the American was hit in the crossfire between police and robbers Saturday evening in Savanna-La-Mar, the main town in the western parish of Westmoreland. It is not a community frequented by tourists.
In a statement, the Jamaica Constabulary Force gave few details. It stated that shots were fired during the robbery and that a foreign national was killed and another person was wounded. A fugitive identified only by the nickname “Bigga” also was shot and later pronounced dead at a hospital.
A police spokesman did not return calls seeking confirmation on whether the American man was caught in crossfire between law enforcers and robbers as the local newspaper reported.
In the statement, police said a 9-mm pistol was seized from the man identified as Bigga, who they characterized as one of the parish’s most wanted men. They said he was wanted in connection for crimes including murder, rape and armed robbery.
An independent commission that investigates alleged abuses by Jamaica’s security forces has started an investigation.
The U.S. Embassy said officials had informed the American citizen’s next of kin of his death and they were awaiting an official report from Jamaican authorities.
Source: AP
