Four charged after robbery spree in Old Harbour

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All four are facing three indictments of robbery with aggravation, possession of a prohibited weapon, using a firearm to commit an offence, and are scheduled to appear in the St Catherine Parish Court in Spanish Town this Friday.

Those charged are Jermaine Golding, 34; Jerome Blackwood, 21; Rennard Rose, 30; and the male teen, whose identity is prohibited for publication under the law.

All accused told investigators that they are construction workers and from Woman Town district in Orange Bay, Hanover, except for Golding who disclosed his place of residence as Bannister here in northern Old Harbour.

Last week Monday, while many Jamaicans on the island were bracing for the pending arrival of Tropical Storm Rafael, the quartet had other ideas, that of using the adverse weather conditions as fodder to carry out their illegal acts.

According investigations, between 1:00 pm and 9:00 pm the accused first robbed a businessman of several items of value, forced him to transfer more than $50,000 to a specified bank account before driving away with his $4.7 million 2019 Toyota Hiace bus.
The businessman was pounced upon at gunpoint while on his farm in Red Ground about one o’clock in the afternoon.

Hours later,  about 7:30 pm, the men drove the stolen Hiace bus to a premises in Marlie Mount where a woman and her son were robbed at gunpoint of electronic items and construction tools estimated in excess of half a million dollars.

The victims subsequently lodged formal complaints at the Old Harbour Police Station following which officers were placed on alert.

The following day approximately 2:00 am as storm conditions intensified, a specialized team of officers intercepted a white Toyota Axio with the men aboard. A search of the vehicle raised further suspicion among the lawmen as the items observed matched the description of the stolen items listed by the victims.

The complainants were summoned to the station where the items were positively identified in addition to the accused men being pointed out during a subsequent ID parade.

Further investigation led detectives to recover the Hiace bus in the Church Pen area, however, a search of the weapon used in the robberies continues.