Suspect held for murder of Canadian tourist in Negril

A suspect, believed to be the man who shot Canadian tourist Denis Balakai to death in Negril recently, has been apprehended by the police in Westmoreland.

Head of the Westmoreland Police Division, Deputy Superintendent David White, made the disclosure on Friday.

The 34-year-old Canadian was gunned down in West End, Negril in the presence of his father and girlfriend.

“We were able to hold one person (who) we strongly believe was the shooter in that one, and have him in custody. And we have questioned many other persons,” DSP White said.

On the broader question of safety among visitors to the resort town, DSP White said: “I can safely say to you, based on our operational activities taking place within Negril at this time and even before, we are satisfied that tourists coming to Negril are safe as we speak.”

White was speaking at a tourism stakeholder meeting which was hosted by Tourism Minister, Edmund Bartlett, at Couples Swept Away Resort in Negril on Friday.

The minister welcomed the breakthrough with investigations into the murder case.

“That declaration that we were able to nab the alleged shooter, it is important that we must get into the marketplace,” Bartlett remarked.

He was, however, critical of the media for what he described as “sensationalising” reports of a Canadian travel advisory in the wake of the visitor’s murder.

“I want to say to all our friends, including our wonderful media partners, that we mustn’t be anxious to purvey negative and bad news, even before we check to find out either the origin or the intention of the news that is coming out,” he indicated.

The minister said the Canadian advisory, “in fairness, is a regular update that they do on all destinations”.

He went on to suggest that, “This advisory was an advisory for all the destinations that Canadians visit — I went through and I saw them, and they are able to rank each country in relation to the safety as they see it. And, therefore, they made the point that Jamaica has a low incidence of crime against tourists.

“The interesting thing for Negril is that if this was an advisory directed at Jamaica, the recent incident here in Negril would have been highlighted. But in naming the places that they regard as risky for visitors, Negril was not mentioned. And yet we have caused almost panic in some quarters in the marketplace.

“I want to just say to us, ‘hello, maybe if it bleeds it leads, but we have to consider the impact in our destination and our economy,’” Bartlett added.

The Canadian Government recently upgraded its travel advisory to its citizens who want to visit Jamaica, warning them to exercise a high degree of caution when travelling here because of the high levels of crime on the island.

In respect of the police’s success in nabbing the murder suspect, along with the division boasting one of the best cleared-up rates in the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), DSP White attributed the results to the investigative system that is being implemented in the parish, which is geared towards identifying perpetrators of crime within a two-day span.

“Westmoreland is on top in the entire Jamaica in terms of the cleared-up rate. And (with) our system that we have put in place, within 48 hours, if we don’t make an arrest of a robber or one who commits murder, we can tell who did it. And because of that capability, we were able to really nab that individual, DSP White indicated.