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Violence erupts after police in Jamaica kill a top gang leader they had sought for years
Original Publication Date: January 23, 2025 11:14AM
Publication Updated: April 10, 2025 9:11PM
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Police in Jamaica have killed a top gang leader whose death unleashed a violent backlash near the capital of Kingston Thursday.
Gunfire echoed throughout Spanish town on Thursday and at least one business was burned hours after police killed Othneil “Thickman” Lobban, whom they described as a top leader of the One Order gang.
The government said authorities were placed under an extreme threat level as a result of the killing.
“We urge citizens to remain calm and to cooperate with the security forces as they work to maintain peace and stability in the area,” Jamaica’s Constabulary Force said in a statement.
Police and soldiers patrolled the streets of Spanish Town on Thursday, though they remained largely empty as schools, businesses and government agencies closed as a precaution. Bus and taxi drivers were urged to avoid the area after the shooting late Wednesday.
Police noted that as they pursued Lobban, residents in one community organized a protest, blocked roads and damaged several official vehicles.
The pursuit comes after the government ordered a crackdown on gangs following recent mass shootings.
Jamaica has one of the world’s highest homicide rates, and many worry the fatal shooting will lead to additional killings.
Jamaica also has one of the highest rates of police killings in the Americas, according to Amnesty International, which said many of those killings appear to be extrajudicial executions.
The One Order gang is based in Spanish town and has been operating for more than two decades, according to a report from the U.N. Refugee Agency.
Local media have reported that the gang is accused of extortion, murder and drug dealing, and that its fierce rivalry with the Klansman gang has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people.
The One Order gang has long been considered an ally of the Jamaica Labor Party, and it is believed to be one of the more powerful gangs on an island where some 250 gangs operate.
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