The police constable who was last night killed, reportedly by his wife, at his home in Somerset district, Manchester, was not only shot but also hit with a hammer.

An evening with Michael Bolton, the Issa Trust Foundation for the Children Charity Concert, ended on a high in the wee hours of Sunday morning after raising in excess of $US350,000 — surpassing the original US$300,000 goal for the construction of the Mary Issa Health Centre near Richmond, St Ann.

Portland Eastern Member of Parliament Ann-Marie Vaz has promised to donate the first-year increase of her salary to the vendors affected by Sunday’s massive fire at the Musgrave Market in Port Antonio, Portland.

In a video release on Sunday, Vaz, stating that bad things come in threes, said she plans to help those impacted by the fire, starting with the additional funds from her salary.

Two weeks ago, Finance and the Public Service Minister Dr Nigel Clarke announced increases in salaries for Jamaica’s politicians over a three-year period ending April 2025. The increases are part of the Government’s compensation restructuring for the public service.

With the increases, Members of Parliament like Vaz will be moving from a salary of $11.1 million in 2022 to taking home $14.2 million by next April.

Speaking Sunday, Vaz said she was thankful that no life was lost in the tragic fire which started in the historic Musgrave Market and affected other nearby businesses in Port Antonio, Portland on Sunday.

"The fire caused significant damage to the market and nearby businesses,” Vaz said.

Expressing her devastation for all affected by the fire, she pledged to donate the “entire first-year increase in my salary” to the vendors affected.

“I am already in dialogue with the GOJ [Government of Jamaica] and various private sector stakeholders as I seek funding that we may assist as many people as possible who've been affected to get back up and running in the shortest possible time,” she said, adding that the market will be rebuilt.

Vaz’s announcement also comes on the heels of Prime Minister Andrew Holness disclosing last week that he will not be taking his massive pay hike under the new compensation structure for the political directorate.

Since the announcement of the increases for members of the political directorate two weeks ago, there has been public outrage over the new salaries.

Owen Irving, the man who was paid $230,000 to hire a triggerman to kill Tamara Geddes in Retreat, Trelawny almost three years ago on behalf of her sister, has lost his bid to have his 20-year prison sentence for murder quashed for the second time.

Legendary Jamaican businessman, philanthropist and founder of the LASCO Affiliated Companies, Lascelles Chin, has died.

BOSTON, CMC – The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has arrested a Jamaican man on multiple criminal charges, including narcotics, firearm, and motor vehicle theft.

NASSAU, Bahamas, CMC – United States Vice President, Kamala Harris, will meet with Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders early next month in the Bahamas.

The investigation into the alleged multibillion-dollar fraud at the investment firm Stocks and Security (SSL) is “progressing”, according to Selvin Hay, chief technical director and head of the Financial Investigations Division (FID).

Astronaut Christopher Huie, the son of Jamaican immigrants, got to wear his Caribbean heritage on his sleeve yesterday when he undertook his first space mission as part of a four-man crew aboard the Unity 25 spacecraft.

Huie, a 35-year-old trained senior engineer and resident of Los Angeles, wore Jamaican and United States patches on his uniform during the planned test run of a mothership and spaceship at Virgin Atlantic’s Spaceport America in New Mexico, ahead of intended 90-minute commercial trips to take place beginning next month.

“For me, it is part of my personal origin story. My parents came to this country from Jamaica looking for more opportunities and to do more with their lives. Both my parents, especially my mum, sacrificed a lot so I could have opportunities she didn’t have growing up,” Huie told online platform Metro.co.uk before the test flight.

“I have had a lot more opportunities in my life than she [his mother] has had, and that’s all culminating in the space flight experience. It’s not only for Jamaica, it’s for immigrants anywhere looking for opportunities to see what you can do with the life that you’ve been given. It’s a story of sacrifice and achievement, that’s what it represents for me,” Huie added.

Yesterday’s test flight made Huie the world’s 19th Black astronaut after having graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in Aerospace Engineering. He had previously worked in the aerospace industry’s private sector until 2016 when he joined Virgin Galactic as a loads and simulation engineer.

Huie’s experience is already creating a path for other aspiring Black astronauts to follow, as he has also co-founded Virgin Galactic’s Black Leaders in Aerospace Scholarship and Training (BLAST) programme, which includes mentorship for college students.

Huie explained that, for him, the test flight was the fulfilment of a childhood dream derived from making spaceships out of LEGO toys.

“I would play with LEGO and I would, pretty much, only build spaceships and flying vehicles, so I was obsessed with machines and building things from a young age. I did want to be an astronaut for a little while, then I decided I wanted to be a pilot, then I changed my mind about being a pilot,” said Huie.

“It seemed like a long road to be a fighter pilot and I just changed careers to become an aerospace engineer. I did not ever think I would ever have an opportunity to go into space,” Huie added. “Growing up, there was only one avenue to get there, and that was essentially going through the military, becoming a test pilot, and having a one in 10 million chance of becoming an astronaut.”

Virgin Galactic, which was founded by billionaire entrepreneur, philanthropist, and airline mogul Sir Richard Branson in 2004, has been billed as the world’s first commercial space line.

Quarter miler Christopher Taylor is facing a lengthy ban for an anti-doping rule violation for evading, refusing or failing to submit a sample collection.