Police have arrested and charged four men, believed to be part of a criminal network, in connection with the July 20 murders of a mother and her daughter in Lauriston in the southeastern parish of St. Catherine – two of four beheadings in one week.
The women, 40-year-old higgler Charmaine Cover-Rattay and her 18-year-old daughter, Joeith Lynch, were killed and beheaded by gunmen who invaded their homes during a pre-dawn attack.
Assistant Commissioner of Police in charge of the Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB), Ealan Powell said the four men include: two labourers and a carpenter, all in their early 20s; and a security guard in his late 20s, all with Lauriston, St. Catherine addresses.
He disclosed that the four, whom he said are part of a criminal network operating in the parish, particularly Lauriston, have also been charged for conspiracy to murder; and illegal possession of firearm and ammunition.
Powell said the men will be taken before the court to answer to the charges “in very short order.”
He said the police are also seeking five persons of interest who they believe can assist in the investigations into the murders, and other crimes committed on St. Catherine. They include an assistant teacher, and a labourer, all of Lauriston addresses.
“We are continuing our investigations, and I would like to offer congratulations to the investigators, our Scene of Crime personnel, and the various units that have been involved in these investigations,” the CIB Head said. “We are proud to say that we have, at least, made significant headway in these investigations.”
Two days before the beheadings of the mother and daughter, a man suffered a similar fate. The double murder of Cover-Rattay and Joeith Lynch was followed by a similar murder two days later.
-Caribbean360
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