Three men were shot and killed by police during an alleged police confrontation. The incident unfolded late Wednesday morning along the Mandela Highway. While the identities of the deceased have not been released, it is alleged that one of the men was being sought by police.
According to sources, investigators had been searching for a man known as “Smeagle”, who they believe was involved in the shooting death of Corporal Christopher Smith at a Texaco gas station on December 6, 2024.
It is said that the police conducted a planned operation on Wednesday that escalated into gunfire, leaving the three men dead and the highway partially shut down for hours. The shooting occurred around 11 a.m. near the entrance to the PJ Patterson Highway.
Almost immediately, authorities diverted traffic, closing the westbound lane and converting the eastbound side into a two-way flow. Motorists were warned to expect delays and urged to follow instructions as the scene was processed. The disruption, while necessary, created slow-moving lines of vehicles as police worked through the forensic steps that come with a fatal encounter.
Official details were limited. However, both The Gleaner and The STAR verified that the three deaths resulted from a police-involved shooting.
What has emerged so far is surveillance footage and a video of the scene shot by an onlooker. The CCTV footage shows what appears to be the armed men hours before the confrontation. In that clip, one individual stands in a parking lot holding what looks like a firearm, while two others exit a vehicle before all three abruptly return to the car and speed off.
A later video, obtained by Moon 10, shows the aftermath of the police encounter. At least two of the men can be seen inside the vehicle, one appearing to suffer a severe facial injury, the other lying motionless. The current condition of the injured man is unclear.
