JDF lockdown

The headquarters of the Jamaican army was placed on lockdown yesterday as military personnel conducted a sweeping search for a missing firearm, the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) has disclosed.

Army officials revealed, too, that two JDF members have been detained and are currently being questioned in connection with the missing firearm.

The pistol was discovered missing from Up Park Camp, St Andrew, during a routine audit of its weapons inventory, the JDF confirmed last night in response to questions submitted by The Gleaner.

“In accordance with established procedures, all JDF bases and installations have been confined pending the outcome of an investigation which is currently under way,” read the statement from the JDF Civil Military Cooperation Unit.

There was no indication up to last night whether it had been found.

This development comes more than five years after two M-16 assault rifles also mysteriously vanished from JDF headquarters. They have not been found.

However, head of the Jamaican army Vice-Admiral Antonette Wemyss Gorman sought to assure the public that the latest disappearance is being treated with the “highest level of urgency and seriousness”, and that all appropriate security and accountability mechanisms have been activated.

Wemyss Gorman, the JDF chief of defence staff, vowed to ensure that the incident is “thoroughly investigated and addressed”.

“Any loss of a military weapon is deeply concerning and completely unacceptable,” she said in a statement from the JDF.

“The Jamaica Defence Force holds itself to the highest standards of accountability and will act decisively wherever those standards have been breached,” said Wemyss Gorman, noting that the JDF remains committed to transparency and public trust.

WILL INFORM PUBLIC

The army chief pledged that the JDF “will apprise the public accordingly as the situation evolves”.

An internal memo, which was dispatched yesterday and seen by The Gleaner, acknowledged that JDF headquarters was notified that “a weapon is unaccounted for”.

The memo, which was signed by a high-ranking officer, did not disclose when the gun was discovered missing or the circumstances under which it disappeared.

“ In light of the aforementioned, I am directed to advise that an (sic) 100 per cent arms and ammunition checks be done by all formations and findings sent to HQ JDF NLT [no later than] Sunday, 3 Aug 25 at 1800 hours [6 pm],” it said.

The army conducts daily arms and ammunition checks to account for all weapons and bullets issued to members of the JDF, insiders explained.

“ Kindly note that in addition, all formations are confined until further notice,” said the memo, making reference to the lockdown.

The internal document noted that accountability checks are a crucial mechanism which JDF formations must employ to demonstrate responsibility for the resources within their custody.

Further, it said all sensitive items must be “meticulously” accounted for, showing evidence of reliability when the appropriate records are being examined.

The two M-16 rifles were discovered missing in mid-February 2020 after an “anomaly” was discovered during a routine systems check to determine if all weapons were accounted for, The Gleaner reported at the time, citing responses from the JDF Civil Military Cooperation Unit.

The disappearance came while the army was conducting a review of its weapons protocol after a soldier who worked in the armoury reportedly removed a weapon he later used to kill his girlfriend in Portmore, St Catherine, before taking his own life.

livern.barrett@gleanerjm.com