THE police have confirmed that two people are dead, and two others nursing injuries after several men armed with guns fired at people standing near a food stall around 6:00 pm in Gordon Town, St Andrew on Tuesday.

Dead are are 27-year-old Raymond Palmer, and 30-year-old Demoy Foster, both from Gordon Town. The injured men were taken to the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) for treatment.

“A group of persons were gathered at a location in Gordon Town at a little stall when several men came on foot and opened fire on them. At the end of the shooting four persons received injuries and two died. The injured two have been treated. This matter is currently being investigated by detectives from the Major Investigation Division in collaboration with St Andrew North detectives,” Senior Superintendent Stephanie Lindsay told the Jamaica Observer.

In an attempt to assuage the fear of residents in the area, who are worried that there could be further attacks, Lindsay said that based on preliminary investigation the attackers had a specific target in mind. She added that the police are aware that a reprisal attack is a possibility and they were looking at all possible ways to protect the residents.

“Once something happens like a murder or shooting of a particular individual, they know that [they] would have to anticipate that there will be some kind possible reprisal because of the persons who are affiliated to the victim and the influence the victim holds in the community,” Lindsay stated.

She added: “For the most part, the police who work in the communities know the individuals in the community. They know those who are involved in gangs, they know those who are affiliated to gangsters, they pretty much have a good local knowledge of the [community].”

“I think they knew who they were after, based on what the investigators [learnt] they had a target. They weren’t just going around shooting people in a shop, they had a target,” Lindsay said.

At the same time, she said it was too early in the investigations to confirm if the shootings were gang-related.

Jamaica has recorded 527 murders up to May 22, but Lindsay said security the forces are committed to reducing violence throughout the country by “apprehending persons, charging them and putting them before the court”.

In addition, she said while it is unacceptable that the country continues to record a high number of crimes annually, the level of murders have been consistently high for the past 20 years and there’s no significant change in comparison to last year.