JAMAICA Police Federation chair Sergeant Arlene McBean, reflecting on the gruesome killing of a police officer at a service station on Beechwood Avenue in St Andrew on Friday night, lamented that nowhere is safe for police officers while calling for systems to protect her colleagues and bolster crime-fighting.

Reports from the Half-Way Tree Police Station are that about 10:54 pm last Friday, Corporal Christopher Smith drove his motor vehicle to the service station to purchase fuel, unknowingly entering an active robbery scene.

While he waited to be served, one of the robbers attacked him and shot him several times. He was taken to the hospital where he died while being treated. He was reportedly off duty at the time of the attack.

McBean, describing Smith as an ardent crime fighter, lamented the hardships police officers face.

“We are attacked when we are on duty, we are attacked when we are off duty. We are attacked when we are at our gate, we are attacked in our homes. We are attacked everywhere — and that is just the sad reality. We need systems to counter these things that are happening,” said McBean.

“It is so hard. And the reality is that with policing, you bid your loved ones goodbye and you tell them later and that later [might] never come. That has happened in the case of our dear brother Christopher Smith,” she told the Jamaica Observer, extending condolence to his family and friends.

The federation chair said it has been a rough season for members of Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), who have witnessed a series of attacks.

“We realise that the criminals in Jamaica, they are emboldened to disrupt, to tear down the social and moral fabric of the society. As a police federation we continue to renew the call for different mechanisms and systems that can strengthen what we already have in law enforcement,” said McBean.

She further urged police officers to stay alert in their private and public lives, warning that they never know when criminals will strike.

Senior Superintendent Michael Phipps, head of Kingston Western Police Division in which the 47-year-old Corporal Smith served at Trench Town Police Station, described Smith as a dedicated member who was always on the front line.

“He had fought many battles and stood tall. He was one of those who enjoyed the confidence of [everyone] across the division. He was a very good team player, so he will be sadly missed by all,” said Phipps of the policeman who served the force for 24 years.

The senior superintendent said that Smith was a success story in the division, receiving several commendations for firearm seizures and major arrests of wanted criminals.

A father of two, Smith also leaves behind his mother, father, siblings, other relatives, and friends who are receiving support from the JCF Chaplaincy Services Branch and the Community Safety and Security Branch.

An individual in the area where the killing and robbery took place told the Sunday Observer that Friday’s attack was not the first time a robbery has taken place at the service station, but said it was the most gruesome attack they had heard of at the location.

“When they robbed it before, I heard they got small amounts of cash, but this sounds like something more major because I hear that is four of them come this time, with guns,” the person said.

Another individual, worried about the safety of the workers, called for security measures to be heightened at the location.

Senior Superintendent Phipps said the amount of cash and items stolen remain unknown. He added that the police have made progress in their investigation but cannot yet share the details.