A Canadian deportee known as Brownman fatally shot a street vendor in Mandeville, Manchester, on Tuesday, September 10, before engaging police and soldiers in a four-hour standoff that left the community shaken.
Police have identified the gunman as 54-year-old Alphonso Wilson, otherwise called Brownman. He was recently deported from Canada and was reportedly unemployed, living in an apartment complex on Caledonia Road.
The confrontation began after Wilson argued with a man over the cost of a tray of eggs. Investigators say he paid $1,000 but was told the price was $1,200. The disagreement escalated into insults and curse words before Wilson allegedly pulled a firearm and shot the vendor multiple times.
The man, who police identified as Adrian Bernard, reportedly drove a Toyota Corolla motor car along Caledonia Road after he was shot, before crashing into the back of a Toyota Prado. He was later pronounced dead at the Mandeville Regional Hospital.
Minutes later, members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) and the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) surrounded Wilson’s apartment in an effort to arrest him. A video captured by a resident and widely shared on social media showed Wilson firing dozens of rounds from inside his residence.
SWAT and specialized police units attempted to negotiate with him, with one officer pleading:
“Mr. Wilson! It is all good. Come out! Surrender! Do not fire at the police anymore! We are not here to do you any harm.”
Wilson refused to comply, forcing officers to call for reinforcements. The intense standoff continued for about four hours, with hundreds of rounds exchanged and the neighbourhood effectively under siege.
The gunfire ended when police breached the apartment, fatally shooting Wilson. Officers recovered a multi-calibre Omni Hybrid rifle, a Beretta pistol, and 790 assorted rounds of ammunition from the scene. No law enforcement personnel were injured.
The dramatic violence, sparked by a $200 dispute, has been described as one of the most intense armed encounters in Mandeville in recent years.
Community reaction was mixed. A social media user, Camilla Levin, commented:
“Jamaica received a lot of deportees from Canada, US & UK. Wow! This deportee had an illegal gun in his apartment. Police should investigate if he’s linked to any other shooting or crime in Jamaica.”
Meanwhile, one resident compared Wilson’s gunfire to military tactics, calling the showdown “a good shootout.”
“When the only thing I hear just raving the rifle like is in the military you know but it was a good shootout that all I can say because it was police from it make a big history,” he said.
Police have since confirmed Wilson’s death and said the investigation is ongoing.
Rumors have circulated on social media that several people were killed in the incident, but this has not been confirmed by authorities.
