A 61-year-old Toronto man and his daughter were murdered in Jamaica during a botched home invasion.
Cops say Clayton Cooke and Gem Cooke, 37, a cashier of Tortuga Drive in Greenwood, Jamaica, were shot to death on Thursday night.
Around 8:10 p.m., the two were at their home on Tortuga Dr. when unknown thugs pounced upon them and began shooting, hitting both father and daughter. The killers then fled in Cooke’s vehicle.
Cooke was earlier seen dropping off his daughter at the home.
Neighbours heard the gunfire and called police. In the yard of the home, officers found Clayton Cooke slumped against a gate while Gem Cooke was lying face down on the ground. They were pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Both had been shot multiple times.
According to cops, Cooke’s vehicle was later discovered abandoned not far from the crime scene.
Jamaica is currently enduring a violent crime wave — and several Canadians have become collateral damage.
Toronto party promoter Mikhail ‘Wayne’ Thompson, 36, was shot to death on Dec. 27 in St. Andrew, Jamaica. Cops believe the murder was targeted.
CCTV revealed that Thompson had opened the gate to his Airbnb and had a brief interaction with a man before moving off. The killer then calmly pulled out a handgun and shot Thompson several times before fleeing in a waiting car.
Thompson had been visiting his native Jamaica for the Christmas season. At the time of his murder, his fiancee was eight months’ pregnant.
Thompson “went to Jamaica to have fun and party and ended up dead in a horrible way.” friend Matt Helm told The Gleaner, adding, “It’s a warning to all tourists.”
In April 2024, Canadian Norman “Andre” White, 62, was discovered in his Maxfield Heights, Falmouth, Trelawny home with his hands bound and head partially severed. It was not clear where in Canada White was from.
One neighbour told the Jamaica Observer: “As a resident, I am concerned, Falmouth not known for these gruesome crimes. Falmouth not known for these bad things. We are a peaceful people and I am very concerned. Trelawny you can sleep with your doors open, now it looks like that will have to stop.”
In October 2023, popular Toronto restaurateur Merrick Aries was brutally murdered in the island country. Aries’ partially decomposed body was found stashed in bushes in Salt River, Clarendon — an area well-known for criminal activity.
The 43-year-old had been shot multiple times in the head and upper body. Investigators believe he was the victim of a robbery ambush.
Aries was the co-owner of The Diner’s Corner at Yonge and Isabella Sts. in downtown Toronto.
Detectives’ working theory was that Aries was lured to the area where he was robbed and murdered. His rental car was discovered at the scene.
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