MONTEGO BAY, St James – The Montego Bay police say five men arrested over the weekend were involved in the recent spate of robberies in the resort city.

“This group of men has over the past two weeks been going around robbing businessmen in Montego Bay and so we believe that their arrest will put a dent in the criminal activities in Montego Bay,” said Superintendent John Morris, the St James crime chief.

The men were held on Saturday night shortly after they allegedly robbed the Fresh Farm Meat and Vegetable store – located on the usually busy Strand Street in Montego Bay – of an undetermined sum of money.

Over the past two weeks, there have been at least 12 robberies in Montego Bay.

Peter Salkey, the police’s information officer for St James, told the Observer last night that shortly after the robbery, which occurred at about 9:30, the police, acting on information, intercepted a Grey Nissan Sunny motor car, registered 5569 EP, in the resort town, with the men aboard.

During the search of the vehicle, two firearms, a .38 revolver containing five live cartridges and a .45 semi automatic pistol, also with live rounds, and $8,790 in cash were found in their possession, Salkey said.

The five, Salkey said, were taken to their homes in various parts of the city and during searches a large quantity of cellular phones, phones chargers, phone cards, portable CD players and a huge quantity of jewellery, believed to have been stolen in recent robberies committed across the city, were found.

The men, whose names are being withheld by the police pending identification parades, were also said to be responsible for Friday’s brutal murder of businessman Sunder Ramchandani, who was killed at his business establishment on Church Street during a daring daylight robbery.

“We strongly believe that one of these guns was used to kill the businessman on Friday,” he asserted, adding that some of the items recovered came from the jewellery store.

Ramchandani, 50, operated the Ruby jewellers and Gift Shop on Church Street for more than three years.

Police said that at about 4:20 pm three men entered the store and brandished guns. Shortly afterwards, gunshots were heard and Ramchandani was seen lying on the ground with gunshot wounds.

The armed men, the police said, then robbed the cashier of an undisclosed sum of cash before escaping on foot.

Ramchandani was taken to the Cornwall Regional Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

“We wish to assure the business community that we are working feverishly and will leave no stones unturned to rid the place of criminals,” Morris said last night.