Western Bureau: After appearing before the Montego Bay Resident Magistrate’s Court in St James for more than a month, Ian English, who is accused of the August 21 murder of Marvin Lawrence at Bottom Pen in the parish, was on Wednesday again remanded in police custody.

When he appeared before the court, the case file was still incomplete and as a result, 20 year-old English, who lost his two infant nieces in an act of reprisal for Lawrence’s murder on August 22, was scheduled to reappear before the court next Wednesday.

On August 21, Lawrence was allegedly involved in an altercation with a vendor named Carlos in Bottom Pen. The argument was said to have been over cigarettes. English, who is Carlos’ friend, is reported to have trailed Lawrence from his stall to a tank in the district. The deceased was later found with a stab wound to the chest and English was allegedly seen running from the vicinity.

Residents, who were on the scene, reportedly set upon English and beat him severely. He had to be taken to the Cornwall Regional Hospital where he was admitted under police guard.

But the incident was, however, not to end with English’s severe beating and subsequent imprisonment. For some time after 1:00 pm, the following day (August 22), men in masks went to his sister’s house in Norwood, and in an act of reprisal, set fire to the one-bedroom house. English’s nieces, 20 month-old Santana Allen and one-year-old Santisa Mason, who were in bed at the time, perished in that fire.

Meanwhile their mother, who had heard noises before the fire was set and who had gone to investigate, managed to escape. Reports are that she ran for her life after she went outside and saw the men who then threatened to kill.

The death of the two babies caused widespread outcry within the community and a plea for the police to step up security in the area and bring those responsible for the vicious act to justice. But to date nobody has been held in connection with the children’s murder.