FALMOUTH, Trelawny — There were loud cheers for popular crime-fighters Detective Corporal Anthony “Robbie” Robinson and Garette “Eddie” Edwards when they collected the mayor’s award at the Trelawny Municipal Corporation (TMC) in collaboration with the Trelawny Social Development Commission (SDC) Heritage Civic and Awards Ceremony on Heroes’ Day.

Robinson and Edwards, who is now a deputy sheriff in the US, were among eight awardees who were recognised for outstanding contribution to the parish during the well-attended ceremony.

Both men, who have collectively served in the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) for over four decades, expressed their gratitude for being recognised for their outstanding service in law enforcement.

Speaking with the Jamaica Observer West, Edwards noted that throughout his career, indelibly etched in his memory is the September 27, 2006 motor vehicle crash on the Bog Walk main road in St Catherine, which claimed the lives of two of his colleagues — Constables Phillip Harris and Dawn Lewis — and the injury of Constable Richard Thompson.

Reflecting on the series of events leading up to the tragedy, Edwards said on that fateful morning he was among a group of lawmen who were on an operation in Duanvale trading bullets with a group of criminals headed by the now deceased Lance Walker, a notorious gunman.

One of the gunmen was shot during the firefight and subsequently succumbed.

Edwards, who served on the now defunct Anti-Crime Task Force and Harman Barracks during his 20-year tenure in the JCF, recounted that the three cops were headed to Kingston to collect prisoners for court in Trelawny, when on reaching Duncans they heard on the JCF’s radio that their colleagues were in a gun battle in Duanvale.

According to Edwards, they spun around and came to the assistance of their colleagues in Duanvale before resuming their journey to Kingston.

“During the shooting, other officers that were on their way to Kingston responded to our call while we were under heavy gunfire in the hills,” he reflected.

“The officers detoured from Duncans, came to Duanvale to help us. Those officers were actually going to Kingston for prisoners to come to court here at 10:00 am. However, those officers, hearing us on the radio, came and assisted us at that point in time and they assisted an injured man. We actually were on foot at the location because we did not want to be observed and so we walked to the bushes. So the officers came and assisted us and they transported the injured man to the Falmouth hospital and subsequently they were late for the transfer of prisoners from Kingston.”

He said he is still traumatised by the horrific news that two of the police constables who assisted his team were killed, while another sustained multiple injuries, when the vehicle in which they were travelling collided with a truck on the Bog Walk bypass in St Catherine.

“…All the phones started ringing and we got the phone call that police officers crashed in Bog Walk and two died. We couldn’t go any further with that operation because everybody started to cry. We returned to the [Falmouth] station,” the feared crime-fighter, who was once shot and injured during a gunfight with three gunmen, recalled.

“I keep wondering if the accident would have occurred if they did not come to our assistance,” he mused.

Meanwhile, Detective Corporal Robinson, who is also a certified plumber, was not only lauded for his crime fighting prowess, but was hailed for his social community services.

“He is community-oriented and assisted the Martha Brae Basic School with their sewage system, a mentor to young gangsters, a motivational speaker on entrepreneurship and has assisted HEART Trust in teaching project management at the Falmouth branch,” a portion of his citation read.