KINGSTON, Jamaica — Chairman of the Jamaica Police Federation, Sergeant Arleen McBean, on Wednesday criticised the Independent Commission of Investigations (Indecom), urging the body to conduct investigations that are independent, thorough, objective and neutral, while properly contextualising cases and keeping the public informed.

McBean was speaking at the thanksgiving service for Constable Charles Stewart at the New Haven Seventh-day Adventist Church in St Andrew. Stewart was one of two off-duty police officers shot and killed on November 13, 2025, during an altercation at a business establishment on Waltham Park Road.

READ: Two cops killed in Waltham Park shooting identified

“Last year was a very rough year for the police. After losing 40 odd colleagues to natural cause and five or six colleagues to the hands of criminals, it means that there needs to be a national outcry, not a supporting for criminal sympathisers, but a national outcry for unity,” McBean said.

“When we look at Indecom, have you ever seen Indecom send out a press release condemning the killing of any state agent? Have you ever seen it?” she asked. “We want them to independently, thoroughly, objectively and neutrally investigate cases and contextualise it and update the public.”

She also cautioned Indecom against what she described as fearmongering and urged police officers to cooperate fully with the body, including providing statements when requested.

“Stop allowing the citizens of Jamaica to panic unnecessarily. We don’t want any jerk reaction at this time. And to my colleagues, when Indecom asks you for a statement, do not believe you’re above the law. Give it to them,” McBean said.

The federation chairman pointed to recent crime reduction efforts which she said reflected sacrifices made by members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), often while facing difficult working conditions, low morale, unresolved welfare issues and concerns about salaries and retirement benefits.

“The crime reduction that you are now witnessing, never seen in 30 years, exemplifies the pledge that every single member of the Jamaica Constabulary Force has adhered to in the gutters, in the trenches, in order to keep the citizens of Jamaica safe.

“My colleagues have it real hard. We are faced with a myriad of issues and atrocities in this country and many of us we stand on platforms and don’t understand that agents of the state have to grapple with the criminals, have to grapple to deal with family issues, have to grapple when you go on retirement, you can’t get paid,” McBean said.

She further renewed calls for clear protocols at public hospitals, referencing a recent incident in which an injured uniformed officer reportedly did not receive priority attention at Kingston Public Hospital.

Urging officers to maintain discipline and integrity, McBean warned that criminals actively plan attacks on law enforcement. She stressed that the killings of Constables Stewart and Jemarey Gordon would not be taken lightly and called on members of the public to reject criminality.

McBean encouraged police personnel to maintain discipline and integrity, warning that criminal elements actively plan attacks against law enforcement.

“When we live bad, the criminals are laughing. We see where criminals are out there doing their thing, calculating, strategising surgically to take down law enforcement officers,” she said.

(Video by Llewellyn Wynter)

(Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)

(Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)

(Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)

SP Randy Sweeney, SSP Tomilee Chambers, SSP Hopton Nicholson, and ACP Christopher Phillips attend the thanksgiving service for Constable Charles Stewart at the New Haven Seventh-day Adventist Church in St Andrew on Wednesday. (Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)

Constable Charles Stewart’s mother, Joan Nooks; his father Charles Stewart; and his siblings Aliyah, Stephen and Kelis Stewart at the New Haven Seventh-day Adventist Church in St Andrew on Wednesday. (Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)

Family members and loved ones at the thanksgiving service for Constable Charles Stewart at the New Haven Seventh-day Adventist Church in St Andrew on Wednesday. (Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)

Chairman of the Jamaica Police Federation, Sergeant Arleen McBean, addresses mourners at the thanksgiving service for Constable Charles Stewart at the New Haven Seventh-day Adventist Church in St Andrew on Wednesday. (Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)