Police yesterday maintained a dragnet in South St Andrew and West Kingston communities wracked by bloody feuding between gangs that has claimed more than 50 lives since April 2004.

Mark Shields, the deputy commissioner of police who manages the crime portfolio, confirmed that the authorities had flooded the communities with police. However, he declined to say how many cops were deployed and how long the operation would last.

“The operation is in a specific area: Jones Town, Craig Town, Denham Town and Arnett Gardens,” Shields told the Observer. “It is intelligence-led and it is based on where the killings are occurring the most. our intention is to tighten our grip on those communities in Jones Town, Craig Town and surrounding areas in order to bring some peace and tranquility back in those communities as the people there are frightened, they are traumatised and they are crying for our help and we are trying to answer the calls.”

The dragnet was put in effect Monday after Arnett Gardens area leaders George Phang and his brother Andrew Phang, as well as Patrick Roberts, the CEO of Shocking Vibes Records and People’s National Party candidate in the 2002 general election, were detained in an effort by the police to end the sporadic violence.

“They are arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder,” Shields said yesterday. “They are being held in custody and will be interviewed in due course and we will decide whether there is sufficient evidence to charge them.”

Police believe an attempt to unseat George Phang as the ‘don’ of Arnett Gardens, popularly known as ‘Concrete Jungle’, is at the heart of the violence that actually began with Phang’s shooting in Arnett Gardens in March 2003.

On April 9, 2004, Anthony Folkes, an apparent under-boss in the volatile community, was shot dead, triggering warnings of retaliation from residents.

A few weeks later, On April 29, Ransford Matthews, 26, a suspect in at least one murder in the area, was shot dead as he watched a game of scrimmage at Avon Park Crescent in the area.

At the time, the police could not say whether Matthews’ murder was linked to the war in the area.

The fighting had continued despite a plea from George Phang, at a hastily-called meeting at the Jones Town Primary School a few days before, for his supporters to exercise restraint and co-operate with the police.

“He asked the people to stop the war and stop beating and intimidating people to move out,” a resident who attended the meeting told the Observer at the time.

The conflict apparently subsided after Matthews’ killing but escalated again in August 2004 when Horace “Ran Johnnie” Murphy, acknowledged as the leader of the Havanna area of Arnett Gardens, was gunned down in the Top Jungle area of the community. He was shot 15 times.

Yesterday, Shields said the operation will be conducted “for as long as it is necessary”. He said that thousands of rounds of ammunition have been fired by the warring factions over the past few months and the police would not tolerate this.

“We have to ensure that we do everything we can to bring those responsible for this illegal and criminal act to justice, whether they have their finger on the trigger or whether they are calling the shots,” Shields said.