Alleged Negril killer in custody in NY

WESTERN BUREAU:

Ayele Russell, the Negril resident who allegedly murdered his girlfriend last year and buried her body beneath the floor of his bedroom floor in the West End section of the resort town, is now in custody in the United States, where he is reportedly facing a robbery charge.

Based on information on the New York Department of Correction website, Russell, who is wanted by the Jamaica police in connection with the death of his girlfriend Nadian Dyer, was arrested on February 12 and charged with second degree robbery. He has since appeared in court and was remanded at Otis Bantum Correctional Center in New York.

"This is fantastic news! When we heard he was in custody, it was the best news possible," a resident of Negril told The Gleaner yesterday. "This is a man who does not deserve to experience freedom for the rest of his life."

According to reports, shortly after 24-year-old Nadian Dyer and her three-year-old daughter, Orlandie Malcolm, went missing, Russell was observed bringing construction material into his house. When quizzed about his activities, he reportedly said that he was constructing a fish tank.

However, in June, acting on a tip, the police went to Russell's house and breached the door to his room, where they were greeted by a foul smell and blood spatter on the walls. Following a search of the room, a grave was found under the bed, covered with concrete. When the grave was dug up, Dyer's body was found. It is still unclear what became of the child, who went missing alongside Dyer.

'Me is a man who just haunted'

Efforts by the police to find Ayele Russell, the Negril resident who allegedly murdered his girlfriend last year, were unsuccessful. 

Subsequent reports suggested that he had fled the island shortly after he completed the so-called construction work at his house. A video subsequently surfaced, showing Russell brandishing at least two firearms and telling an unknown female that he is a man with two distinct personas - good and evil.

"Me is a man who just haunted, yuh see mi! Girl, yuh nuh understand mi, girl. Mi love laugh and t'ing, but yow, there is total different sides of me, there is a evil side and there is a good side. Mi love you, mi love you, mi really do love yuh," Russell explained in the video, while holding a high-powered weapon close to the camera.

When the police Area One Headquarters was contacted yesterday to find out if they were aware that Russell was in custody in New York, The Gleaner was told that the commanding officer was in a meeting. However, another usually reliable police source said he was unaware of Russell's arrest and would pass on the information to his superior.

Based on the information posted on the New York Department of Correction website, Russell is slated to make his next court appearance on March 15.

adrian.frater@gleanerjm.com