A suspect has been arrested in Jamaica over the murder of a British Windrush migrant and his wife who were found dead near their homes on Friday.
The suspect, who is not being named, is being held at the local police station for questioning by authorities over the couple’s deaths.
Charlie Anderson, 74, had retired to Jamaica from Manchester with his wife Gayle, 71, just 12 months ago.
Sources on the Caribbean island told the Sun that Gayle was found with her hair burnt off 20ft from the couple’s luxury retirement home.
Husband Charlie’s body was discovered with burns to the genitals an hour later 40 metres away from Gayle.
Local reports said the couple had been stabbed as both were reportedly found with wounds to their face and neck.
A source also told the Sun the couple’s windows had been removed from the outside and the living room had been set on fire.
Gayle Anderson, 71, and her husband Charlie, 74, were discovered ‘partially burned’ near their home in Mount Pleasant, Jamaica on Friday
The couple were said to have recently retired to the rural community of Mount Pleasant (pictured) from Manchester
A police source in Jamaica told The Sun: ‘We have a lot of strands to put together – some of them we just can’t explain yet.’
‘Mrs Anderson was discovered 20ft in front of the house and on the couple’s property. She was lying on her back and her body had been partially, although not severely, burned.
‘Her hair was burned off, but her face was visible. And her clothes were burned with some material sticking to her body.
‘Mr Anderson was found 40 metres from the house, but still on the couple’s land. He and his clothing were also burned – it was concentrated around the genitalia area.
‘There were pieces of burnt clothing between his body and the house, like he had been on fire and was getting away from the building. He was found towards the end of a long slope. One of the rooms in the house was also burned, their living room which I believe they also used to cook in while they did construction work on another part of the home.’
While a spokesperson for the Jamaican police said: ‘The police arrested someone today. They made an arrest this morning and have started to question a suspect about the murders of two Britons.
‘The man is being detained at a police station in the area. No one has been charged and the police will release a statement later on about developments on this murder.
‘The police have plenty of time to either charge the suspect or release him. While he is being questioned the police are looking at other lines of inquiries and persons of interest.’
Mrs Anderson was the first to be found on Friday with her hands and feet bound together, while her husband was discovered two hours later with what police to be gunshot wounds.
Preliminary police investigations revealed that the couple had recently been defrauded of $8million Jamaican dollars (£50,000) by credit card scammers.
Investigators are looking for a man from the Mount Pleasant community who reportedly fled the area a little over a month ago in connection with the murders.
According to a family member, between August last year and May of this year, a total of 45 credit card transactions were made at prominent hardware stores and supermarkets in Portland without their knowledge.
Charlie and Gayle Anderson pictured on their wedding day. The couple had been married for 55 years before their deaths on Friday
Only two weeks before her death Gayle had been forced to return to the UK to secure copies of commercial transactions made by the fraudster.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Throyville Haughton told The Sunday Gleaner: ‘Both bodies had wounds to the neck and face. However, we are not yet able to say what might have caused those injuries.
‘We are making every effort to bring closure to this heinous crime, and as such, we are getting assistance from our Area Headquarters and also from Technical Services from Kingston. Our detectives are still in the area carrying out investigations.’
Mr and Mrs Anderson’s sons said in a statement to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office: ‘Our parents Charlie and Gayle enjoyed a long and happy marriage of 55 years and leave behind their four grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
‘They were hardworking people, building a business with integrity and making sure we were always provided for.
‘Charlie and Gayle were pillars of the community in Manchester and Jamaica, and were hugely popular and loved by many.
‘They were just beginning the next chapter of their lives, retiring to Jamaica before this terrible tragedy.
‘We would like to thank our friends, family and community for their prayers and support.
‘We are completely devastated and ask for privacy at this extremely difficult time.’
Deputy Superintendent of Police Throyville Haughton (pictured) said authorities were appealing for help from the public
Former neighbour Kishore Singh, who lives on High Bank in Manchester, said ‘they were two of the most beautiful people in the world, Charlie was like a father to me’.
The 51-year-old said Mr Anderson, who came to the UK as a Windrush migrant, had been building a house in Jamaica and had been going back and forth over the past few years.
He went on: ‘He would tell me ‘I’m going home, I’ve worked in this country and now I want to go home and retire and enjoy my last few years’.
‘He would tell me how the house building was going with so much pride in his face. We’d stand outside talking for hours.
‘When I found out what happened I couldn’t accept it. Not Charlie.’
Mr Anderson, a builder, gave up his free time to help Mr Singh renovate his house when he moved in around 12 years ago.
He said: ‘He would come round every morning and show me what to do, and again at 4pm after he had finished work, he didn’t ask for a penny. I can’t big him up enough, he made time for everyone.
‘And when we moved in Gayle was over straight away with housewarming presents and gifts.’
Mr Singh said the Andersons moved out to Jamaica for good around 12 months ago having lived in Manchester for decades, but had been back in the UK recently after falling victim to credit card fraud.
While Jerome Heslop, a farmer from the community in Jamaica said: ‘I am baffled by these murders.
‘They have given so much to this community, and they have never said no to anyone. Each time they are in Jamaica, they bring back shoes, clothes, tablets, food stuff, school items, and other stuff for residents.
‘It is a wicked and sinful act, and the community has lost two great people.’