Tragedy in Spanish Town

The sadness and gloom that settled over the Keystone community in Spanish Town, St Catherine, on Thursday was palpable as residents emerged after hours of heavy rain only to be confronted with heartbreaking news: 29-year-old teacher Tara Pinnock and her 14-year-old daughter, Talia Wright, had been found dead inside their apartment.

Pinnock, who taught at Bridgeport Primary School for the past two years, had moved into the quiet community with her daughter about the same time. Talia was a student at McGrath High School.

They were both discovered with multiple stab wounds and their throats slashed.

The schoolteacher’s father, Delroy Pinnock, who lives in Kellits, Clarendon, recalled the moment he learned something was wrong.

“I got a call from the principal at the school where my daughter teach to say she did not turn up for school for two days. I called her phone and no answer. I called my granddaughter’s no answer, called Brandon’s phone, no answer,” he told The Gleaner.

Concerned, he asked his wife to go to the apartment to investigate what happened to them. That’s when she called to say that the police found them inside the house lying in pools of blood.

Struggling to contain his grief, Pinnock added, “I am in a bad place right now … . I don’t know what to say because she did not say she was having problems with anyone.”

A neighbour, who requested anonymity, said quarrels were not uncommon at the apartment.

“There were always heated arguments coming from the apartment,” the neighbour told The Gleaner.

The police are urging taxi operator Brandon Maine, who plies the Naggo Head to Spanish Town route, to report to the nearest police station or the Spanish Town Criminal Investigation Branch as they believe he can assist with the investigation.

Pinnock said Maine, who has since been asked to report to the Spanish Town Criminal Investigation Branch, had been introduced to the family as Tara’s boyfriend.

“He came to our house in the country more than once. He never displayed any aggressive behaviour, and she did not say he was abusing her, so mi nuh know if them have any friction,” he said.

Police investigators report that the house was properly secured when they arrived, suggesting that the killer had access to the home and locked the grille before leaving. Pinnock’s body was discovered half-nude in her bedroom.

Detectives believe the murders may have occurred before Thursday. They are theorising that a domestic dispute may have been at the centre of the gruesome killings.

Councillor for the Lauriston Division, Keisha Lewis, visited the scene. She said she had no knowledge of any reports of abuse involving the victims.

Although she did not personally know the mother and daughter, Lewis said she was deeply shaken.

“This has always been a peaceful community, where each neighbour looks out for each other,” she said. “If any act of abuse was known, there would have been some form of intervention.”

The murders have sent shockwaves through the normally quiet community as relatives, friends, and neighbours await answers in what police describe as one of the most disturbing cases in recent months.

As at November 8, there were 45 murders in the St Catherine North Police Division this year, compared to 83 for the corresponding period in 2024. Nationally, there were been 571 murders, a 41.7 per cent decline from the 979 between January 1 and November 8, 2024.

ruddy.mathison@gleanerjm.com