19-y-o charged with Kidd Lane triple murder

A 19-year-old man has been charged with three counts of murder in connection with last Friday’s deadly attack on Kidd Lane, off Spanish Town Road in St Andrew, which claimed the lives of two women and a one-year-old boy.

The accused, Dante Davis, who has addresses on Spanish Town Road and Kidd Lane in Kingston 13, is also facing charges of conspiracy to commit murder, arson, conspiracy to commit arson, possession of a prohibited weapon, unauthorised possession of ammunition and using a firearm to commit a felony.

The Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) announced the charges yesterday, crediting detectives from the Homicide Investigation Division and the St Andrew South Criminal Investigations Branch with the swift action that led to Davis being arrested and charged.

The killings sparked outrage and fear in the community, with grieving relatives recounting the final moments of their loved ones and residents fleeing the area amid concerns about further violence.

The victims were identified as 39-year-old Kimesha Gibson, 30-year-old Lashea Ellis and one-year-old Khael Daley, all of Kidd Lane.

Ellis and her infant son were killed when armed men went to their home, opened fire and set the house ablaze. Before fleeing, the gunmen reportedly opened fire on a neighbouring house, killing Gibson.

Ellis’ mother, Natasha Hall, previously recounted the desperate telephone call she received from her daughter moments before the tragedy.

“Mi lay down in there and mi hear the shots dem a buss, but mi never know say it was in mi yard until mi daughter call mi and say, ‘Mommy come throw water on the house’,” Hall said.

She described being unable to reach the water as the flames engulfed the house, leaving her daughter and grandson trapped.

Ellis, whom relatives described as a devoted mother, died leaving behind an eight-year-old daughter who escaped the attack uninjured.

Hall said her daughter had tried to protect her baby from the flames.

“She love her pickney dem, y’know. She did a hug up her baby. She put the mattress over her like she a try protect them from the fire,” she said.

Gibson’s teenage daughter also recounted rushing to her mother’s room after hearing gunshots, only to find her shot and unresponsive.

Before the announcement of Davis’ charges, police had named 11 people of interest as investigations intensified into the killings and gang-related violence in Kidd Lane and Bowens Road.

Davis was among four people of interest in police custody on Wednesday.

A highly placed police source had also told The Sunday Gleaner that one of the suspects in the attack was killed in a confrontation with members of the security forces on Wellington Road.

The latest police statement did not indicate whether the investigation had resulted in further charges or how many of the other people of interest had not yet reported to the police.

editorial@gleanerjm.com