Jamaican police kill 5 men as department criticized for surge in fatal shootings

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Police in Jamaica say they have filled five men suspected of plotting to kill someone as the department comes under fire for a surge in fatal shootings

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Police in Jamaica say they have filled five men suspected of plotting to kill someone as the department on the Caribbean island comes under fire for a surge in fatal shootings.

Authorities said in a statement late Monday that police were investigating an alleged murder plot that led officers to the location where the men were shot. The shootings occurred Monday afternoon in St. Andrew parish, where the capital, Kingston, is located.

“Officers came under heavy gunfire and responded to the threat to their lives,” police said.

Authorities noted that no officers were injured, and that they were looking for a sixth man nicknamed “Bloodstain” who escaped.

Police said that they reported the killings to Jamaica’s Independent Commission of Investigations, a government agency created in 2010 to investigate complaints against Jamaica’s police, military and corrections officers.

Security forces on the island have long been accused of unlawful killings and using excessive force.

Last week, the commission issued a statement saying that it was concerned “over the continued rise in fatal shootings by the Security Forces, in particular fatalities arising from planned police operations, as well as the persistent failure to prioritize the deployment of body-worn cameras.”

It noted that so far this year, Jamaican security forces have fatally shot 177 people, compared with 80 in the same period last year, representing a 121% increase.

From July 18, 2024, to July 18 of this year, forces have killed 288 people. The commission noted that police didn't use body cameras in any of those incidents.

“A recurring theme in the shooting incidents show that weapons are alleged to have been pointed at officers, but in the absence of third-party eyewitnesses or video evidence, investigators are unable to verify or justify the use of lethal force,” the commission said.