WESTERN BUREAU:

Days after the police force was rocked with the embarrassing revelation of having a fake cop on staff, news has emerged that three of its members robbed a customer at a Western Union office in Montego Bay on Saturday afternoon.

Reports are that two men attached to the Island Special Constabulary Force (ISCF) and a district constable held up a customer at gunpoint in the money-transfer store on Market Street. They escaped with hundreds of thousands of dollars, gun-butting the customer before leaving with the loot.

The robbery has been reportedly linked to the lottery scam, which has been blamed for Montego Bay's crime surge.

Manhunt launched

Following investigations, the police reportedly set up a sting operation and the men were identified. However, only one was held. The other two escaped.

Their colleagues have since launched a manhunt for them. It is believed that they have been the masterminds behind several major robberies in the parish of St James.

Since the start of the year, five policemen in the parish have been placed behind bars for corruption-related incidents while several others are being investigated.

When The Gleaner sought to confirm the story on Sunday night, commander in charge of the ISCF in St James, Commander Leonard Mason, said he had "no knowledge of any Western Union being robbed by any of my men".

Superintendent Maurice Robinson, head of the St James Police Division, said he could comment on the matter Monday.

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com