Jamaica probes police killings of four people in 24 hours, including a teenage boy

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A government agency in Jamaica says it is investigating four fatal shootings by police officers in the span of 24 hours, including that of a 14-year-old boy.

The Independent Commission of Investigations says police killed three people on Tuesday and another on Wednesday, with authorities alleging all four victims opened fire on the officers under investigation for the shootings.

Two of the killings happened in the capital of Kingston, including that of a high school student and another of an unknown victim the commission is trying to identify, according to a statement the commission released Wednesday.

A 21-year-old man also was killed in the northern parish of St. Ann and a 34-year-old man wanted on charges including murder was killed in the northwest parish of St. James.

Police have killed a total of six people and wounded two others so far this year, according to the commission. It was created in 2010 to investigate complaints against Jamaica’s police, military and corrections officers.

Security forces on the island have long been accused of unlawful killings and using excessive force, with fatal shootings increasing since 2019. Few officers are charged.

Jamaica’s Constabulary Force has repeatedly dismissed the accusations, saying that officers routinely face heavily armed gangs in dangerous areas.

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