Police presence beefed up in Clarendon after 10 persons were shot, two fatally by gunmen

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Dathan Henry, the Head of the Clarendon Police Division, told RJR News,on Saturday, July 9, that police personnel have been deployed to the troubled community, with an aim to restore peace to the area and to look for the gunmen behind yesterday's attack.

SSP Henry added that the police are having a hard time getting information from residents of the York Town area, where the Settlement gang is based, as it relates to illegal activity in the community.

Three of the 10 wounded persons were shot just before 7:00 a.m. on Friday when a group of people were dropped off at work in the heart of York Town.

A car reportedly drove up and the armed occupants shot at the group, hitting five of them.

Otis Beckford, 44, otherwise called 'Tex', and Alex Simms, 33, died on the spot.

It is alleged that moments later, the same gunmen went to the community of Bullards Content and opened fire, hitting five persons who were at a grave-digging event.

The police believe that both incidents are linked to an internal gang feud in the community.