CLARK’S TOWN, Trelawny – In the wake of the recent shooting death of two-year-old Jerome Campbell in his Mack Hill community, Member of Parliament for Trelawny Northern Tova Hamilton is urging residents to inform the police of feuds before they escalate.

Detectives have charged Anthony Findley, also known as ‘Boy Blue’ and ‘Buddy Man’ of Clark’s Town with the shooting death of the infant.

On Sunday, March 12, about 8:00 pm, the Trelawny police responded to a shooting in Mack Hill district, Clark’s Town.

Investigations revealed that Findley and a male cousin were embroiled in a conflict. Findlay reportedly left the scene and returned with a firearm, which was used to open fire at his cousin, who was seated in a Honda motor car.

READ:Toddler shot dead in Trelawny

It was reported that the bullets missed the intended target and hit Campbell — the two-year-old boy — who was seated in the rear of the car. The boy was rushed to the Falmouth General Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Findlay fled the scene but was subsequently nabbed by lawmen during a stop-and-search operation in the parish.

Hamilton, who on Friday, visited Mack Hill with members of the Trelawny Police Division, and a pastor, who prayed with the residents; noted that the altercation between the cousins was known by community members who failed to inform the police.

“If you see or hear anything you must report it to the police. Remember you can call the police and give them information and don’t have to indicate who you are or anything. You can call the tip line. Say something, the police can intervene. It’s difficult to police what’s in somebody’s heart, which is why as a nation we need to be more loving towards each other. The sanctity of life its being eroded, ” she bemoaned.

“It is a very, very disappointing news to hear. I mean the two-year-old who hasn’t lived any life yet, was innocent but got caught up in two family members fighting over foolishness. And we’re not addressing the issue of violence. We can’t continue to live like this. It’s two family members, two cousins that decide that this is how they want to address issues and the two- year -old obviously got caught in it,” she added.

She expressed her sympathy to the infant’s pregnant mother, who remains hospitalised since the deadly shooting incident. On Saturday the parliamentarian visited the mother in hospital.

“I visited the mother on Saturday in the hospital because she’s eight months pregnant. And you can imagine the distress on her,” Hamilton lamented.

Meanwhile head of the Trelawny Police Division Winston Milton, who led his team in the walk through the Clark’s Town community, urged citizens to seek amicable methods of resolving disputes, outside of resorting to violence. He highlighted that the police work with “other stakeholders to bring assistance to you in resolving this other than through acts of violence”.

“Increasingly we are seeing where our citizens are resorting to acts of violence other than dialogue in resolving disputes. Particularly domestic disputes are everybody’s business. If a neighbour is embroiled in a conflict you have the responsibility to report this to the police,” DSP Milton told Observer Online.

“At the end of the day the perpetrator will be arrested and brought before the court and this disrupts family life on both sides of the fence”.