FOUR men were yesterday taken into police custody in connection with Thursday’s murder of a gardener, the robbery of seven tourists and the injury of a watchman at Falcon Cottages in Negril, Westmoreland.

Superintendent Cecil Fletcher told the Observer that the police believe the four are persons who they feel will assist “tremendously” in the investigations.

“As a matter of fact, one requested a justice of the peace to take him in,” Superintendent Fletcher said.

At about 2:00 am Thursday, the watchman at Falcon Cottages was attacked and injured. By 4:00 am, after the guard was treated at hospital and returned to the premises, the assailants struck again.

This time, the gardener, Robert Legg, 30, was shot in the chest and chopped to the neck while six Britons and one Canadian were robbed of about $50,000 in cash and jewellery.

Meanwhile, senior police officers yesterday met to discuss improved security for Negril, including increased patrols.

“The management of the Westmoreland Division met and looked at different strategies and we will beef up our operational measures,” Superintendent Fletcher said.

He added: “We are planning to have meetings with property owners to encourage them to look at their own security at their premises to assist us in dealing with situations like these,” he said.

“You can’t (for example) take a watchman to deal with the (criminal) elements that we are dealing with in these modern times… So, they will have to get good security to assist in the overall fight against crime,” he said.

It is one measure that Prince and Maud Nunes, the owners of Falcon Cottages, intend to implement, even as they grapple with the death of their gardener, Robert Legg.

“We have to tighten up security. We have to get a guard because this one (who was injured in the incident) didn’t have a gun or anything to protect himself…” Maud Nunes, who was off the island with her husband at the time of the incident, said.

At the same time she said Legg, who had been with them for the past 11 years, would be sadly missed.

“It is unbelievable to describe him. He wasn’t only a gardener. He was a member of the family. If guests come here and they look a bit uncomfortable and want to leave he would be so nice to them that they would stay,” she said.

Added Nunes: “If a cook called sick he would be there to take over. If anything happen on the property he was there to help to fix… He was such a decent person.”

The Falcon Cottages owners will also have to market their property to attract guests, as 18 of the 20 who were staying there left after Thursday’s tragedy.

“The (tour) representative removed them to other hotels… It is very heart-rending because we have just gone through a refurbishing process and we haven’t had any guest for a long time. So it is very hard, financially and everything,” she said.

“You can’t tell anybody that you can’t pay the light bill because you are being robbed. You can’t say you can’t pay the phone bill because you are being robbed. You can’t tell the government that you can’t pay the tax because you are being robbed. Everybody wants their money. So it will take a toll on us financially,” she added, clearly angered at the incident.

Meanwhile tourism director, Paul Pennicook said that the seven guests who were directly impacted by the attack would be completing their vacations on the island.

“They have all been moved and they will all be completing their vacation in Jamaica.

“We are working closely with the tour operator involved and making sure that the best care is taken of these people,” he said.

As for what officials will do to stem the impact on the industry, Pennicook said there was not much they could do.

“Like everybody else we, in tourism, would like the crime situation to be dealt with because it is not good for tourism. I don’t think we should get off on this thing that there should be any dramatic measures taken all of a sudden. Yes, it hurts tourism but the fact of the matter is that we need to do something to solve crime period,” he said.

Added Pennicook: “The worse part of this incident is that someone has lost their life. And I really want to express condolences to the family of the gardener.”