Bendals youth, 17, loses his life in altercation that led to stabbing by another teen; police detain one person for questioning

The family and a community continue to mourn the death of a teenager whose
life was snuffed out in his prime, leading residents to call for more serious
action to be taken by the Government to tackle youth-on-youth violence.
 
Omarrie Graham, 17, of Bendals, became the country’s fourth homicide victim
for 2024, when he allegedly was stabbed to death by another teenager on
Saturday night, May 4, during a dispute in the village.
 
The matter was reported to the Johnsons Point Police Station by a 911
emergency operator. As a result, several officers – from the Serious Crimes
Unit, the Forensic Evidence Recovery Unit, and the Bolans Police Station –
were deployed to the scene in Bendals. 

There, officers reportedly met the lifeless body of the 17-year-old lying on the
western side of the road in the vicinity of the Anglican Church. His body was

examined and officers allegedly observed stab wounds to the left side of his
neck, left forearm, and left wrist. 

Graham, according to reports, had been involved in an altercation with a
villager who inflicted the fatal injuries and then fled the scene.  The incident
had taken place at about 9:35 p.m., on Middle Road, in the vicinity of the
former Free Style Friday Dance.

The district doctor arrived on the scene and pronounced the body dead at
12:44 a.m. The coroner, Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel, was informed, and the
body was taken to Barnes Funeral Homes for storage at the family’s request. 

One person has reportedly been detained for questioning in reference to the
teenager’s murder.