Dwayne Mcleod, Staff Reporter

Some students had the scare of their life after gunmen, a security guard and a police officer traded bullets in a daylight shoot-out on the campus of the University of the West Indies yesterday.

The incident left one man dead, a security guard injured and three persons, including a sixteen-year-old youth, in police custody.

An illegal firearm was also recovered.

THE STAR learned that men from a nearby community went on to a construction site which was being operated on campus in search of work.

It was further understood that upon entering the worksite, the men encountered rival gang members. The men obviously saw this as the perfect opportunity to challenge their rivals, so they left and returned with guns.

The now-armed men were in for a rude awakening, as a police officer dressed as a civilian saw what was about to happen and decided to intervene.

A gun battle then ensued between the officer and the men, who ran in a bid to escape.

When the shooting ended, one of the men was found suffering from gunshot wounds. He was later pronounced dead.

These reports were confirmed by the police, who also reportedly seized an illegal .38 revolver.

A security guard who allegedly tried to aid the police officer was also shot and injured. Up to press time he was said to be in stable condition at the University Hospital of the West Indies.

The St. Andrew Central police are investigating.

Meanwhile, some students, though a bit shaken up by the incident, are thanking the police officer who braved the situation and challenged the gunmen.

Students of the university with whom THE STAR spoke noted that the situation could have been much worse had the brave cop not decided to intervene.

"I was frightened, of course. I saw everything ... It was a very dangerous situation but had the officer done nothing, who knows what could have happened? Maybe some students would have got hurt," one witness and student of the university said.