Judicial Scoop

Tragic Turn of Events: St. Catherine Resident Malik Wynter Pleads Guilty to Fatal Crash in Rio Cobre

On November 20, 2023. Malik Wynter, a resident of St. Catherine, stood before the esteemed St. Catherine Circuit Court and made a heart-wrenching admission. He pleaded guilty to a charge of causing death by dangerous driving following a devastating collision that claimed the life of an innocent woman. A minibus, tragically, veered off course and plunged into the depths of the Rio Cobre.

The Judge will sentence Wynter in the St Catherine Circuit Court on January 8, 2024.

The police had charged Wynter with the death of Valerie Ennis, 52, of Whitehouse Housing Scheme, St Catherine.

Wynter, who attorney-at-law Oswest Senior-Smith is representing, accepted responsibility when he appeared before Justice Bertram Morrison in the St Catherine Circuit Court.

The Court heard evidence that on June 8, 2021, Ennis was a passenger in a Toyota Hiace minibus heading towards Linstead from Spanish Town.

While traveling along the roadway, a Toyota Fielder motor car, which Wynter was driving, overtook a line of traffic and collided with the Hiace minibus–causing it to flip over and plunge into the Rio Cobre River.

Eight persons, including Wynter and a passenger in the Toyota Fielder, were injured.

The impact ejected Ennis from the minibus into the Rio Cobre. Hospital authorities pronounced her dead at the hospital after divers recovered her body from the river.

The St Catherine North Traffic Department investigated, which led to Wynter’s arrest. He was subsequently charged and made numerous court appearances.

A parish judge remanded two charged in the airport ganja bust. 

Two men whom the police arrested and charged recently after attempting to smuggle ganja out of Jamaica through the Norman Manley International Airport have been remanded until November 30.

Glenroy Dwight Campbell, 36 years old and unemployed from Spanish Town, St. Catherine, and Garfield Owen Campbell, 22 years old, from Harbour View, Kingston, appeared in the Kingston and St. Andrew Parish Court on Monday, November 20, 2023.

The police arrested the uncle and nephew pair during an anti-narcotics operation at the airport.

They are charged with forgery, dealing in, taking steps to export, trafficking ganja, and conspiracy.

During Monday’s court hearing, their attorney, Christopher Townsend, in a bail application for Garfield, told the Court that his client is a student at a community college.

But even though the clerk of the Court is not opposing bail regarding Garfield, the presiding judge remanded both men pending verification of Glenroy’s address.

According to the authorities, narcotics detectives conducted random checks of vehicles in the car park at the Cargo Village of Norman Manley International Airport. They searched a brown Honda CRV with both suspects aboard.

During the search, the officers found more than 167 pounds of ganja concealed among ground provisions and monies totaling J$200,000.

The authorities seized the drugs and cash and placed both men into police custody.

The police conducted a secondary operation at the homes of the men, which resulted in the seizure of an empty 9mm magazine.

The officers indicted Glenroy Campbell with additional charges of possession of criminal property and possession of a fraudulent restricted area pass.

Garfield Campbell faced an additional charge of possessing a prohibited weapon for the magazine.

Crime Roundup

Police charged an 18-year-old prison escapee with murder.

WESTMORELAND, Jamaica – On Friday, November 17, 2023, the police charged an 18-year-old prison escapee and repeat offender in connection with a murder he allegedly committed on Grampa Scheme Lane in Georges Plain, Westmoreland, on October 24, 2023.

Ian Wright, o/c ‘Papa,’ from the Georges Plain district in the parish, has been charged with murder, possession of a prohibited weapon, and using a firearm to commit a felony.

The police identified the deceased as Dwane Malai, o/c ‘Soujie,’ aged 39, a farmer from Belmont District in Bluefields, Westmoreland.

According to the police report, at about 9:10 p.m., on the day in question, Malai was traveling on his motorcycle with his girlfriend when a gunman attacked and shot him in the upper body before fleeing.

Residents summoned the police, who responded and found Malai lying on his back with what appeared to be gunshot wounds.

The officers transported Malai to the hospital, where the authorities pronounced him dead. The girlfriend was not injured.

Wright, who had escaped from the Metcalfe Remand Centre while serving an eight-year sentence, was captured by the St Catherine North police on November 8, 2023.

The police charged him on a warrant while in custody at the Spanish Town police lock-ups.

His court appearance date is pending.