REPUTED leader of the notorious Jones Town-based Joe Benbow gang, Joseph ‘Joe Benbow’ Barrett, and his crony Tafari ‘Tito’ Murphy, were yesterday morning fatally shot during an alleged gunbattle along the Port Royal main road in East Kingston.

The two men, police said, fired at a patrol team after

the car in which they were travelling refused a signal

to stop.

The police said officers returned the fire and

following a brief car chase, Barrett was shot dead. Murphy, who was injured, died on the way to hospital.

Two illegal pistols – a 9mm Smith and Wesson and a Lorcin 9mm – were taken from the men, the police reported. The Smith and Wesson pistol, which was reportedly being fired by Barrett, ran out of bullets, while Murphy’s gun contained a magazine with two rounds of 9mm ammunition.

The windscreen of a police Toyota Hilux pickup truck was damaged by gunshots which the cops said were fired

by Barrett.

Barrett, who led the feared Joe Benbow gang based at Benbow Street in the tough inner-city community of Jones Town in Kingston, was last May granted bail in the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court on charges of conspiracy to deceive customs, importation of firearms, conspiracy to import prohibited goods, conspiracy to import firearms and ammunition and conspiracy to import restricted goods.

Barrett was held after a woman, identified as Trudy-Ann Warren, went to the Norman Manley International Airport in November last year and cleared a package which she declared contained baby clothes. However, police knew that the package contained a Glock 40, a 9mm Browning, a Springfield 9mm and a .45 Ruger pistol along with 10 rounds of .45 ammunition and 16 rounds for the

9mm weapon.

A sting operation was set up and Warren was seen entering a vehicle occupied by Marsha Johnson, 24, and Wayne Johnson, 35, also called ‘Howard Johnson’, a taxi operator, both of Benbow Street in Jones Town. Police said when they intercepted the vehicle they were told that the package was to be delivered to Barrett in Port Royal.

Barrett, who was on bail at the time in connection with murder and shooting charges, turned himself in the same day.

As a condition of his bail, Barrett who left Jones Town to reside in the sleepy fishing village of Port Royal, was ordered to report to the police in the area.

Police yesterday described Barrett as a feared gang leader who led his cronies in a deadly battle against rival gangs in Jones Town and the neighbouring communities of Torrington Park and Lower Ivy Road.

“We suspect that he ordered the death of the brother of Murphy after he ordered the man to carry out a murder in Lower Ivy Road and the man refused, so he shuffled the deck. These criminals have no scruples. How could I roll with a man who killed my brother?” a police source said yesterday.

Barrett and his cronies were also suspects in the murders of Maureen Bennett and her seven-year-old daughter, Damone Skyers, who were burnt to death after about a dozen gunmen invaded Torrington Park in the wee hours of June 21 and firebombed their house.

The mother and daughter attempted to flee the blazing one-room concrete structure but were forced back inside after the gunmen fired at them. Residents who attempted to assist them were also fired on by the gunmen.

Their bodies were found in the bathroom.

Police at the time said the attack was in reprisal for an arson attack on Barrett’s mother’s home in a nearby community. An elderly man perished in that attack.

The Joe Benbow gang also featured in internal Jones Town conflict that lasted for more than two years and resulted in a number of murders and a mass exodus from sections of the poor community.