I generally avoid commenting on cases under police investigations for several reasons. (1) You never know how investigations will turn out; eating crow is not something I particularly relish.(2) the police deserve all of the deference they can get to do an already difficult job. With that said, one homicide has caught my attention amidst the litany of others, not for any particular defining characteristic except that it seems that particular homicide should not be too difficult to solve.
Nevertheless, over a year has passed, and still, the deceased’s family has not gotten closure as the police have not made an arrest.
Now I understand that it’s easy to shrug and say, “join the line; there are thousands of unsolved murders in Jamaica,” but again, the circumstances of this case cause me to second guess my deference to the police on this one.
The case involved the death of 51-year-old Germaine Junior at a home supposedly owned by an attorney at law, Patrick Bailey, over a year ago.
According to local reporting, the deceased was stabbed several times and shot once in the head.
The deceased man was reported to be a naturalized American citizen and was supposedly visiting the Island upon his death. Mister Junior’s family is incensed at the police for good reason. The family insists if their loved one were a prominent person, the case would have been solved long ago. They bemoan the fact that the police have been in contact with them only once in the last year since mister Junior’s death.
A couple of points have stuck out like a sore thumb, in this case, leaving much room for speculation in the absence of better reporting and more information forthcoming from the police.
♦ Patrick Bailey is a prominent attorney who easily fits into the category of the proverbial big man according to Jamaican culture.
♦ Was mister Junior there as his guest, if not his, then whose?
♦ Who else lives in the home of attorney Patrick Bailey if anyone?
♦ Police reported that Bailey stumbled upon the body at about 4:30 am in his own house as he was asleep even though mister Junior was allegedly shot.
♦ If the homicide happened in a section of the residence outside mister Bailey’s earshot (assuming the residence is large enough that Bailey would not have heard a gunshot), nevertheless, who gets up and walk around the house at 4:30 am?
♦ How could Bailey sleep through what must have been a struggle, much less the sound of a gunshot in his house?
♦ The statement that he stumbled upon the body at 4:30 am could only have come from Bailey himself, which gives it little credibility under the circumstances.
♦ A proper coroner’s inquest should nail down approximately what time mister Junior was killed, as against Patrick Bailey’s assertions.
♦ The Police reported that there was no forced entry to Bailey’s house. This is absolutely critical evidence as it demonstrates that whoever killed mister Junior had access to the residence.
♦ A knife believed to be the one used to stab mister Junior was allegedly found beside his body, was it checked for fingerprints?
♦ If Mister Junior was living abroad at the time and was only visiting the Island, why would the police and others allege that he was a caretaker of the residence?
♦ The fact that mister Junior’s body was found with multiple stab wounds suggests a crime of passion coupled with the fact that he was also shot.
♦ Was Patrick Bailey’s person checked for marks indicating whether he was involved in a struggle, or did the police take his word that he slept through a stabbing and a shooting? If not, why was it not done?
♦ Why was Patrick Bailey ruled medically unfit to give statements to police by Doctor Jeptah Ford at the time?
♦ According to local media reports after the incident, Patrick Bailey’s doctor and client, Jephthah Ford, instructed that he be confined to bed after reportedly exhibiting signs of being unwell. Ford also said he was not fit to give a statement at the time.
♦ Why was Bailey given special privileges when even police officers traumatized by instances of fatal encounters are forced to give a quick accounting as to what occurred?
♦ Who else had access to the residence, if anyone, and what was their relationship to mister Junior?
♦ Did the police check Patrick Bailey’s house for bloody clothes or clothes recently washed?
♦ Did the Police check outhouses (if applicable) and garbage receptacles for potential bloody clothes?
♦ If the police determined there was no forced entry to Bailey’s house, how could they summarily rule him out as a suspect?
I am making no assumptions about who killed this man; I am not saying anyone, in particular, is responsible. I am saying that the Police should get up off their backsides and do the investigative work, and whoever killed mister Junior should be bangled up and bundled off to jail. Bailey was reported to be arrogant when contacted by the media asserting quote,” anything dem seh, mek dem seh it. I have no answer; just publish whatever they say. My back is broad. I have no comments, no comments, no comments! Just simply, you report whatever you want to,”
According to local media reporting, Assistant Commissioner of Police Élan Powell, who had the crime portfolio at the time of the homicide, insisted that the police were hiding nothing and the investigations would be done, and the chips would fall where they may.
This statement does little to assuage the anger and distrust the family of mister Junior harbors as it relates to the police’s ability to bring the killer of their loved one to justice.
Clearly, whatever the underlying assumptions and presumptions in this case are, a human being was murdered, and someone is responsible for his unlawful killing. This cannot be a difficult case to solve one way or the other.
If the owner of the premises, a well-heeled lawyer, did not kill the victim, someone else did in his house.
It does not require rocket science to figure this case out; if no one broke into the house and there was no one else in the house, then the person in the house is the killer, or the person in the house knows who killed mister Junior and has aided and abetted the coverup of this horrendous murder.
This case is a travesty and should not stand; the police cannot be that incompetent or, worse, pissed-scared that they are unwilling to arrest the killer or killers.
Whatever the police know caused them to rule Patrick Bailey out as a suspect ought to be made public or told to the grieving family.
Bailey deserves no special treatment or deference under the law over and above anyone else, which would give the police reason not to divulge how they determined he was not a suspect.
In February of 2016, Assistant commissioner Powell told a Gleaner Editor’s forum that the police did not wish to name the suspects in the matter but sought to assure that the police were actively pursuing the case.
Since Powel was in charge of crime at the time, both he and the head of crime must now give a proper accounting to this bereaved family as they are duty-bound to do.
There should be no more murders swept under the rug because someone knows someone who knows someone.
This should not be allowed to stand, and the family should not stand for it; they are right in demanding answers.
.
.
.
Mike Beckles is a former Police Detective, businessman, freelance writer, black achiever honoree, and creator of the blog mikebeckles.com.