As a young man I was influenced by several older men who were part of my development. Some were direct influencers, like my father Ronald McKay and my uncle Paul McKay. Others were iconic figures who established themselves in areas where I was active.

Even as I grew older I would see characteristics in great people that I wished to emulate. As a martial artist, I wanted to be ageless like George McFarlane, committed like Tony Robinson and Claude Chin, and benevolent and selfless like Patrick Chang.

As a police officer, I wanted the courage of Camendo Thoms, the investigative prowess of Homer Morgan and Leighton Blackstock, and the strength of Cornwall “Bigga” Ford (he literally said exactly what he felt irrespective of who didn’t like it).

As a businessman, there was only one person I have always wanted to be like. That was Errol Cann. He was a big businessman in Spanish Town in the 1980s and 90s. He was murdered in 1993. He was like Jesus in Spanish Town. It sometimes appeared he was paying to school the whole town.

As someone who firmly believes that only this type of direct intervention will bring about any real change, Errol Cann was my hero. When he was murdered, I took it personally. Not because I knew him, I didn’t, but because I knew of him, and I was so impressed by what I saw him do.

I learned a lot from his murder. I will share some of these lessons with you.

One of the lessons I learned is that it doesn’t matter how good you treat the community, it can’t protect you from common criminals. This is a lesson that many business persons need to learn as they sponsor treats with the hope of it providing a safety blanket.

The criminal, the gang, the thug, is not a part of the community. He is a parasite that lives in the community. The biggest victim of the gangster is the community; his first victim. The gangster is the ultimate representation of selfishness. He cares only about himself. If he does something that benefits the community, it is simply a control mechanism. It is not genuine affection.

The ghetto community is a victim of poverty, social inequality, and an impractical approach by society to champion their improvement. The ghetto community is also a victim of the gangs. It is the convenient misunderstanding that merges the community to the gangs that make it okay for it to benefit from the political process. More importantly, it creates a good excuse to allow gangs to continue to exist.

I learned also that Jamaica always solves its major cases. This is because we have had some incredible investigators as far back as the great Dick Hibbert and WG Walker, and even beyond. I learned from that shooting that incarceration does not provide adequate retribution for every crime.

I am still bitter about Errol Cann’s murder. Despite the fact that it was investigated and the perpetrators sent to prison, I am not satisfied.

This is difficult for me because I don’t support the death penalty. Not because I don’t believe that killers should be hanged. I so do. I just don’t believe that the State, knowing that its system is imperfect, should give sentences that it cannot reverse. So it puts me in a peculiar position.

So I also learned from this case that a 30-year sentence and a 40-year sentence are not adequate for murder. These men will come out in my lifetime. At least one is out already, or soon will be. This is not good enough.

From a security practitioner’s standpoint, this case taught me that business persons should not move their own money. Why? They don’t drive ballistic vehicles. They don’t have adequate staff. The logistics of firearm combat does not provide any advantage of engaging an attacker whilst you are sitting in a motor vehicle.

We have seen in recent times how inadequate courier teams appear when they are attacked whilst attempting to move money. This is not because they are useless, it is because they have no cover. There is no ballistic cover when you are sitting in a normal unarmoured car like Cann was.

One of the sadder things I learnt from the Errol Cann murder is that you can’t replace great people. There have been many unselfish, social activists in Spanish Town who have done great service to the town and community, but Errol Cann was Errol Cann.

Many lives would have turned out better had he not been killed by useless walking pounds of evil with nothing to contribute other than to make the lives of the innocent harder and sadder than is necessary. So many stopped attending school regularly because his assistance was gone.

I also learned how many laws and human rights conventions exist that men like the killers of Cann can draw on to seek legal redress. I learnt this reading Deon McTaggart vs Jamaica in his application before the human rights committee. Everything from the 12 months remand to how many times his slop bucket was emptied a day was a ground for something.

Well, it’s a known fact that this writer is no fan of human rights activism for killers. But please, someone tell me why we should care about how well the man who murdered Errol Cann is being treated in prison? He should have been hanged in accordance with the laws.

I accept that the system has done what the rules say, but it’s not good enough for me. I want to ask him why did he kill a man who only did good for his community? Does he regret it or does he only regret being caught?

I still want to be the businessman Errol Cann was with his social conscience, but I neither have the means nor the heart. As I said, some people come along once in a lifetime, and they are often killed by mongrels who are as common and useless as cigarettes.

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