Six freed after GraceKennedy theft case thrown out in St. Catherine

Six people charged over the alleged theft of about $9 million in goods from a GraceKennedy site in St. Catherine were freed on Friday after a parish court dismissed the case for want of prosecution.

They had faced counts of larceny, conspiracy and breaches of the Proceeds of Crime Act. The court was told that although several trial dates had been set, the Crown was still not ready because the case file was incomplete. Defence lawyers argued that pressing on would be a miscarriage of justice, and the charges were thrown out.

The matter arose from a reported May 2024 theft of pallet loads of products, including corned beef and coconut powder, from the GraceKennedy complex on Salt Pond Road in Spanish Town.

Separately, residents of Hellshire, St. Catherine, blocked sections of roadway on Monday to protest weeks without a reliable water supply. Some said they had gone without for up to three weeks and that shortages recur each year. One resident said that on Saturday alone they spent $13,000 buying two drums — about 1,300 gallons — from a private tanker. Another, living in the area for more than 20 years, said the pattern repeats annually and needs a planned response.

The National Water Commission blamed an electromechanical fault at the Brighton Relift facility for low pressure and intermittent supply across several Hellshire communities. The agency said repairs were done late Monday and service is being restored gradually. Residents still pressed for clearer notices, including truck schedules, noting they keep receiving bills while buying water. Others questioned how new housing schemes can be supported while shortages persist.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, speaking at the Christmas in July trade show, said the sector is moving into a new phase centred on training, human capital and stronger links between tourism and local producers. He described a shift to “tourism 3.0,” focused on innovation and local linkages, and said the government intends to repeal the decades-old Tourist Board Act and replace it with legislation creating a tourism authority to better govern dealings between local players and international partners.

In St. James, health officials urged residents to clear mosquito breeding sites after June 2026 surveillance showed modest rises in key indicators. Officers inspected 16,653 premises, found 2,268 positive, checked more than 100,000 containers with 3,663 positive, and reported an Aedes index of 13.6 per cent, up from 12.6 per cent the previous month. Fourteen of 82 drains inspected tested positive and were treated, including sites in Reading, Cambridge, Garlands, Pondside, Granville and Salt Spring. Fogging covered 26 communities, up from 18 in May, with fewer rain days disrupting operations. Port health checks continued at airports and seaports.