Community Focus: Alma and Camp Savannah Mountain enjoy peace - Communities exhale after demise of gang

Five years ago, there was much fear in the lives of the residents living in the communities of Alma, Camp Savannah Mountain, and several other adjoining communities in Westmoreland. This was because the much-feared Alma gang was wreaking havoc with their violent acts.

“Since the dismantling of the Alma gang, life has returned to the community. People are now able to move around freely without being afraid that they might be, shot and killed by gangsters,” one resident told the WESTERN STAR.

“Back in the day, we were forced to close shops long before dusk. But now, that’s not the situation anymore. If I fall asleep and my doors and windows are not closed, I am not worried because that fear has long gone – some five years ago,” the resident added.

The much-feared Alma gang, which created havoc in Westmoreland and the adjoining parish of Hanover, was responsible for a spate of robberies, rape, murders, and extortion under the leadership of Toniel ‘Malta’ Haughton during the period 2008 to 2014.

CONVICTED AND SENTENCED

Haughton was killed during a confrontation with the police in 2014 while fellow gang member Eugene Douglas, popularly called ‘Nepaul’, of Station Road in Little London, was convicted and sentenced to 40 years for illegal possession of firearm and shooting with intent.

The police said then that 13 members of the Alma gang were either arrested or shot and killed in confrontations with lawmen.

Fast-forward from those dark days. Residents say that life could not be more peaceful for them after seven years of deadly fear and raging gun battles.

“At first, when the gang was active, a lot of people were scared to move around, especially at night. It was more dangerous,” a senior community member said.

“Some were not afraid because they were well-known by the gang members, but when the gang was broken down, people regained much confidence to hang out on the streets at nights again. We are able to go freely.”

“I was born here in Alma, and I wasn’t afraid of the gang because the way I live with everybody in the community, I know they would not do me anything. We have to give thanks now that the community is back together again. Social relationships are more accommodating among the residents now.”