The communities of Central Village and Windsor Heights have been rocked by police reports of buggery leveled against the St Catherine South division's most wanted fugitive, Stokely 'Pepper' Collins of the Pepper gang.

Deputy Superintendent Albert Dyer related a shocking tale of victims being hospitalised after alleged acts of buggery to initiate new male gang members and drive fear into female victims.

"We have an investigation going on about the initiation of a young man into the gang that can be construed as an act of sodomy," Dyer told The STAR.

"The matter is being investigated by the Central Village police. He was brought to the police by relatives because his life was in danger. We can't say much more about his situation because we have to protect his identity. He is now at risk not from only the gang leader, but also people, in general, because of the perception of people who this act would have been committed on," DSP Dyer added.

beaten

The senior policeman related the ordeal of a female from Windsor Heights, who was beaten and hospitalised after making public her incident of buggery.

"There have been reports of similar acts being performed on females. One was almost beaten to death by the gangsters because she went back into the community and made this known to other persons. She was beaten so badly that she was admitted to the Spanish Town Hospital for days. She and her relatives had to move out of the Windsor Heights community as a result," DSP Dyer added.

Collins leads the Pepper gang and was last month named among the Area Five police's 11 most wanted men.

Also known as 'Stinger', Collins is the division's most wanted. His gang operates in the Windsor Heights/Central Village areas and extorts businesses in the parish.

DSP Dyer told The STAR Collins has been on the run for close to two years but has proven elusive, aided and abetted by the hilly terrain of Windsor Heights.

wreaking havoc

"He was wanted before I came to the division in 2011. Several attempts have been made to get him to surrender to the police. He has been hard to catch due to a combination of the terrain and his modus operandi. He goes into the hills when he is hot. When we go after him, he slips out of the community and lay low then sneaks back in."

Dyer said the Pepper gang has been wreaking havoc in the area. "He is wanted for kidnapping, shootings, beatings, all the works that go into the gang lifestyle. Right now, that gang operates one of the largest stolen car rings in the island, coming out of the Central Village area. For last year, we've recovered about 20-odd stolen vehicles, including nine recently found in the hills behind Winsdor Heights. It's the same gang operating there," he pointed out.