NORWOOD, St James – Blood-curdling screams jolted Norwood, St James awake just before dawn yesterday as gunmen launched a vicious attack that left five people dead, including an elderly couple. The gunmen also torched the homes of their victims, grim evidence that the recent spate of killings in this volatile inner-city community was meant to send a chilling statement.

The latest killings, which police are linking to gang-related violence, brought the murder toll in the north coast parish to 82 since the start of the year.

Police said a group of gunmen, using the darkness as cover, entered a section of Norwood known as ‘Gulf’ at about 3:00 am and kicked down the door to the house of Patrick Roy Anderson, 43, jerk chicken vendor, also known as ‘Bigga’.

They set the house on fire and as Anderson ran desperately from the blazing building, shot him several times, the Constabulary Communication Network (CCN) said.

The men then went next door where they again kicked in the door to the home of Natalie Ferguson, 28, also known as ‘Nennen’. She ran out the back door, but was spotted by the marauding gunmen who shot her several times, silencing her piercing screams.

Ironically, Anderson and Ferguson died near the scene of a recent double murder in which one of the victims was beheaded after being shot.

Continuing their mission of death, the gunmen then went to another house a few metres away in Hendon, Norwood, where they shot dead an elderly couple, Linda Malcolm, 57, and her common-law husband, Michael Montaque Snr.

The gunmen also set that house ablaze, killing the couple’s 20-year-old son Michael Montaque Jr in the attack.

Alton Davis, a TVJ news producer, lost both his mother and brother in that attack.

The body of Davis’ mother and stepfather were charred, while his brother’s body was found outside the house. The police later found several spent shells and AK47 rounds at the scene.

Yesterday, residents gathered in groups at the crime scenes and looked on grim-faced as Norwood wrote another chapter in death and mayhem.

But their sorrow turned to joy and relief when Sonia Campbell, the mother of one of the murdered women – Natalie Ferguson – alighted from a taxi. The residents feared that Campbell was at her daughter’s home at the time of the attack, and that she had been abducted by the gunmen.

Ferguson’s five-year-old son, who was at home when his mother was murdered – but escaped unhurt – hugged grandma Campbell tightly and would not let go.

News of the murders prompted deputy commissioner of police, Mark Shields and a team of investigators to visit the Area 1 police headquarters in Montego Bay for a briefing late yesterday evening.

Shields, his face a mask of concern, vowed that the police would do everything to capture those responsible for the gruesome murders.

“The residents can expect more determination by us to catch the criminals who have committed these murders,” he said.

“And we will also be determined to ensure that we can work with the community to build that confidence that they can trust us, in order that we get these people (criminals) off the streets,” Shields added.

The killings also brought a sombre-faced Member of Parliament for Northwest St James, Dr Horace Chang to the scene to reiterate his call for army personnel to be deployed to the troubled community, as a short-term measure.

“The crime situation in Montego Bay and Norwood is obviously getting way beyond acceptable levels. It is now of crisis proportion and the response of the government agencies, including the Ministry of National Security is grossly inadequate,” Chang charged.

“It’s clearly not working. We are now near 80 murders. which is way above the numbers last year,” Chang added.

Meanwhile, deputy commissioner of police in charge of Area One, Keith ‘Trinity’ Gardner, told the Observer that preliminary investigations suggested that the same group of men was responsible for all five murders.

“It is early days yet, but we have been getting preliminary information to direct us to a particular group of men, and as time unfolds we will keep you up to date,” Gardner added.

He made an appeal to residents who might have seen anything to call Area One headquarters, the Montego Bay CIB or Operation Kingfish.

At Observer press time last night a large contingent of senior police officers was still in the community.