A teacher and her 14-year-old daughter were dead at their St Catherine home on Thursday. The shocking discovery was made in Spanish Town by police after receiving a concerning call from the principal of Bridgeport Primary.
According to reports, 29-year-old Tara Pinnock was teaching at the school but did not show up for work for two consecutive days. Her absence raised red flags for the school’s principal, who contacted the police after repeated attempts to reach her were unsuccessful.
Officers went to the house and were forced to break in when no one answered. Inside one of the bedrooms, they found both mother and daughter, Talia, dead. The pair were said to be lying in pools of blood. Early indications suggest they were stabbed to death.
Nationwide News cited sources that said Miss Pinnock was in a common-law relationship. She lived with her daughter and her partner at the residence. However, the identity of the spouse was not released, and police are currently unsure about his whereabouts. The matter is being probed by detectives, the press, and the Spanish Town Police, who are leading the investigation.
The double murder comes at a time when St Catherine has seen a lot of bloodshed after 5 men were shot dead and one was injured hours earlier. The parish was the scene of a deadly confrontation between police and armed men.
That incident began in Guy’s Hill on Wednesday evening; armed men killed a businessman and injured another. When the attackers attempted to flee in a KIA motorcar, police intercepted the vehicle at Linstead Bypass and the gunmen. According to reports, the men jumped out and opened fire on the officers, sparking an intense shootout. One of the men escaped, but the other 4 were shot dead, and police reportedly recovered two illegal firearms.
Up to November 8, the parish has recorded 95 murders, 49 in St Catherine North and 46 in St Catherine South. There has been a decline in murders this year, as 153 were reported during the same period last year.