Former murder accused shot dead in Cocorite

A former murder accused was gunned down on Friday night just after evening prayer at a mosque in Cocorite.

Police said Jelani Parkinson, 25, was standing outside the mosque at Waterhole, Cocorite, at around 7.50 pm, when two masked gunmen approached and shot him.

He was taken to the St James Medical Facility where he was declared dead at around 8.07 pm.

Police believe his killing is linked to another murder in the area on Thursday.

In that case, Tyrell Williams, 25, was liming with a group of men at Waterhole at around 11.30 am when he was shot dead. Police said the gunman ran off. Williams may have been killed because he was not from Waterhole.

Parkinson was charged with murdering a neighbour in 2016 and released two years later after the court upheld a no-case submission.

Chief Magistrate Maria Busby Earle-Caddle agreed with Parkinson's attorneys Osbourne Charles, SC, and Kelston Pope that the prosecution’s main witness was unreliable since Parkinson was not clearly identified as the killer.

It was alleged that Parkinson killed Dominic "Zebby" Gregoire on November 15, 2016.

Gregoire, 39, of Pitilal Road, Waterhole, was with two men at Freedom Street, Cocorite, building a wall when a masked gunman killed him.