Fears that a massive gang war is brewing in the Yellow Elder Gardens area have prompted police and Mount Moriah Member of Parliament (MP) Arnold Forbes to move quickly to avoid further bloodshed in the area.

Two residents of Major Road, Yellow Elder Gardens were recently gunned down just days apart.

Mr. Forbes teamed-up with officers in the area yesterday to conduct a walkabout in a bid to quell residents’ fears that things will only get worse.

“Crime will not be tolerated,” Mr. Forbes said. “The police are here and they are in control of this country. We wanted to come out here and let the residents know that it is safe to come out and that the police is dealing with the situations that have been going on and we wanted to show our support for the community.”

“During my campaign, I promised to lead from the front on every issue as it relates to the Mount Moriah constituency. Immediately, I have called on the minister and minister of state for national security to increase saturation patrols, which are designed to effectively man crime hotspots. Criminals must fear that the police will catch them.”

Five people were murdered in one week last month, including 19-year-old Elijah Roberts, who was gunned down just after 11:00 p.m.

Roberts was sitting in a car with another man in front of a Major Road home when a man approached him and opened fire.

The gunman fled on foot and Roberts was pronounced dead on the scene.

He was the country’s 83rd for the year.

Four days later on September 4, police were again called to Major Road for another shooting death, this time 19-year-old Lamar Bain’s bullet riddled body was found through a service road.

His death pushed the homicide count to 85.

Residents in the area said the mere fact that two murders happened through the same corner just days apart have sent shockwaves through that community, leaving them in fear that more deaths might be on the way.

“Every night you hear gunshots,” one female resident said. “And you can’t help but think that when daylight hits you will get the news that someone else was killed. The guys around here are always fighting with each other, always cussing at each other, I just don’t know what is happening; they are always ready to fight.”

“I haven’t slept since those two murders and I just don’t know who is going to be next. They need to stop this fighting.”

Clement Eneas, who operates an outreach martial arts programme in the area, said some residents in the area have been at odds for quite some time now with the arguments and fights sometimes turning deadly.

“The problem is that we have far too much bickering going on in this area,” he said. “We need to calm this down and we all need to come together.

“What you see today is a product of yesterday,” he added. “The kids today are paying the price for yesterday because there was never any social outreach programmes for the kids. A lot of the kids fell by the wayside and started off with dope, then went on to car theft and now murder we need far stringer police presence in the area.”

Another female resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said she has lived in the Yellow Elder area for 35 years.

She said she is “saddened” to see what is happening in her area. She said in days past she and her neighbours were able to sleep with their doors and windows unlocked and opened – a far cry from her reality today.

Mr. Forbes said some social programmes are on the way to fight crime in Yellow Elder.

“I am also pleased to announce the establishment of a Council of Elders from the Mount Moriah constituency to work in tandem with the Yellow Elder Crime Watch Association,” Mr. Forbes added.
“Together, these two initiatives will work to provide necessary information to both the police force and myself.”

“The Council of Elders specifically will work closely with me to identify specific needs and solutions to the solving the problems that exist particularly and uniquely in the Mount Moriah constituency.”

Mr. Forbes added that there are also plans to set up an Urban Renewal Centre in the area.