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THIS WEEK’S NEWS SUMMARY
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PRISONER SET ON FIRE IN CELL—4/8/2006
A 22-year-old prisoner being held at the St. James Police Divisional Headquarters lock-up in Montego Bay, was set on fire in his jail cell. According to reports, the constable set the man of fire after he accused him of being a homosexual. According to reports, the constable has been on the Jamaican Constabulary Force for less than five years. He and four other officers on duty the night of the incident have been placed on suspension pending an investigation. The man being held in jail on robbery charges, received burns to his face and back and is receiving treatment at a local hospital. There are no reports on what materials were used to set the fire.

BODIES OF TWO MEN FOUND—4/9/2006
The decomposed bodies of 26-year-old Kevin Davis and 19-year-old Gary Smith were found yesterday morning. The two brothers from St. Catherine were reported missing on Tuesday after their scheduled court appearance. Their bodies were later discovered in a hole in close proximity to a Spanish Town market. According to sources, the men had been observed at the Magistrate’s Court in Spanish Town and called family members as they were leaving. This is the last time they were heard from. The St. Catherine North homicide division is investigating the incident.

JAMAICA DEFENSE FORCE GETS NEW BOAT—4/9/2006
The HMJS Middlesex was officially commissioned at the Jamaica Defense Force base in Port Royal over the weekend. Prime Minister Simpson-Miller was among the many dignitaries attending the ceremony. The Middlesex is one of three boats to join the JDF’s fleet. Each of the custom-built ships will be used in fighting the illegal drug trade in and around Jamaica. The new ships, being built by a Dutch company, are said to cost a total of US$3 million. The third ship, the HMJS Surrey, will arrive to Jamaica in June of this year.

EMPLOYEE PROTEST SHUTS DOWN FACTORY—4/11/2006
In the wake of recent announcements to shut down the Frome sugar factory in Westmorland indefinitely, angry employees stormed the offices of Curbette Victorine, the Operations Manager for the Sugar Company of Jamaica. The Sugar Company of Jamaica made the decision after reports of unsafe working conditions caused by disgruntled employees. According to reports, Victorine left the offices and went into hiding until police arrived. Further reports show that employees have been threatening management and demanding certain employees and members of management be relieved of their duties.

HYLTON SET FREE AFTER FIVE YEARS—4/12/2006
Michael Hylton, the former Director of the Sugar Industry Research Institute, was cleared of all conspiracy charges stemming from a 1999 conviction. Hylton and Roy Paharsingh were both charged with conspiracy in attempt to defraud the Sugar Industry Authority of money. The two were convicted, however Hylton filed an appeal and Paharsingh was eventually only charged with one count of fraud. It has taken five years for Mr. Hylton to clear his name. According to officials, the courts were delayed in receiving transcripts from the original trial.

HEWITT TO RUN FOR OFFICE—4/13/2006
Christine Hewitt-Gordon, a long time entertainment promoter, has decided to run for a vacant seat as a Member of Parliament for South Trelawny. According to Hewitt-Gordon, she feel she has a great chance of winning due to her popularity among citizens. Hewitt-Gordon attributes her interest in politics to family members and current and former Prime Ministers. According to statements, Hewitt-Gordon wants to bring technological advances and training facilities to the area. Hewitt-Gordon will be running against Marissa Dalrymple-Phillibert from the Jamaica Labor Party for the seat being vacated by Devon McDaniel.

PHIPPS FOUND GUILTY OF MURDER—4/13/2006
Donald “Zekes” Phipps, 48, was found guilty on two counts of murder stemming from the deaths of Rodney Farquharson and Dayton Williams of east Kingston in April 2005. The twelve-member jury came back with the guilty verdict after only two hours of deliberations. The other defendant in the case, Garfield Williams, was set free last March. According to court reports, the two victims were found burnt to death on an open area near downtown Kingston. Phipps will be sentenced on April 20.

SUTTON NAMED DEAN OF ANGILICAN CHURCH—4/14/2006
Dr. Maria Sutton, a native of Portland, has been named the first female Rural Dean in Jamaica’s Anglican Church. Sutton received a Masters Degree in Anthropology and Education from Columbia University and a Masters Degree in Divinity from Newman Theological College in Canada. Beyond her masters education, Sutton has performed her additional studies at Yale and University of California at Irvine. Sutton, who was ordained in 2002, has reached the highest position for a woman in the Anglican Church. According to Church guidelines, women are forbidden from becoming an Archdeacon, Suffragan Bishop and Diocesan Bishop, the three positions next in rank.

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SPORTS
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ST. CATHERINE MOVES ON TO FINALS—4/8/2006
The St. Catherine boys basketball team has moved on the finals of the KFC/ISSA All-Island Basketball Championships to be held at National Stadium. They advance after beating Wolmer 61-58. St. Catherine, just off a victory over Jamaica College, got off to a slow start however, they were able to pull off the upset with just seconds left in the game. Leading the team was Javan Bailey with 25 points and 9 assists and Noel Wright with 20 points and 7 rebounds. St. Catherine moves on the play the winner of the St. Jago, Old Harbour game.

G.C. FOSTER COLLEGE WINS AT CHAMPIONSHIP—4/9/2006
The women of G.C. Foster College won their division of the Intercollegiate Track & Field Championships at G.C. Foster College. The team was led by Peta Gaye-Beckford with four wins. Beckford holds wins in the long jump, shot put, discus and javelin competitions. This increased their overall points to 213, a 58 point lead over second place finisher, University of Technology. The men of G.C. Foster College also came out on top in their division with a 15 point lead over the second place men of the University of Technology.

RUSSEL WINS, MOVES ON TO DAVIS CUP—4/10/2006
With a 6-3, 6-0, 3-0 win over Guatemala’s Cristian Paiz, Ryan Russell of Jamaica has advanced his team to a seat in the Davis Cup, Americas Zone, Group Two. The left-hander from Montego Bay, took only a little over an hour to defeat Paiz. Paiz eventually forfeited the match due to a strained muscle. Other members of the team include Captain Douglas Burke, Germaine Smith, Damion Johnson and Eldad Campbell. According to Burke, the team is planning to develop a tennis facility in Montego Bay and Oho Rios to increase training.

U.S., REGGAE BOYS PLAY IN UNITED STATES—4/11/2006
The Reggae Boyz are traveling to North Carolina in the United States to play a friendly game against the United States. The Boyz are looking for their first-ever win against the U.S. team at SAS Park. The two have meet 16 times before with US winning nine of those games and seven ending in a draw. The last time the two teams met was at the quarter-finals of the 2005 Gold Cup. The U.S. won that game 3-1. Reggae Boys will be playing without senior members Ricardo Fuller, Ricardo Gardner, Jason Euell and Marlon King.

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CREDITS/SOURCES
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The weekly news is compilation of new articles from top Caribbean and Jamaican news sources.