TWO gunmen were cut down after engaging the police in a gunfight in the upper St Andrew neighbourhood of Charlemont Avenue, Barbican on Wednesday night.

According to the Constabulary Communication Network (CCN), the police got reports that criminals had attempted to abduct a woman and steal her car in the Mona Commons area and were patrolling the area when they noticed a white Toyota Caldina with four men on board. The police say they signalled the vehicle to stop, but the driver sped off and a high- speed car chase — from Hope Boulevard to Charlemont Avenue in Barbican — ensued.

A police report said the car in which the men were travelling crashed into a Toyota Town Ace van, after which the occupants of the car, alighted and fired at them. During the gunfight that followed, two of the gunmen were shot. They were taken to the Kingston Public Hospital where they were pronounced dead. The two other men in vehicle escaped, although a police source at the Matilda’s Corner station reported that one of the men is believed to be seriously injured.

The police also say the Toyota Caldina was stolen and bore false registration plates. The car was reported stolen at gunpoint in Mammee Bay, St Ann in September.

“This does not happen in our neighbourhood very often. We were all scared for ourselves and our families,” one resident of Charlemont Avenue said.

Meanwhile, members of the Organised Crime Investigation Division (OCID) yesterday recovered a Desert Eagle handgun and eight rounds of ammunition during an operation in Eastwood Park Gardens, Kingston 10.

Two persons were subsequently arrested for the weapon, which was found in a house.