Jamaican mob
attacks three men perceived as gay

Three men thought to be gay were rescued by police after being confined inside a pharmacy in St. Andrew, Jamaica, for an hour. The Jamaica Observer reported Thursday that a 2,000-person mob cornered the trio into the Monarch Pharmacy in Tropical Square.

When police arrived, the group was resistant. According to the article, when authorities attempted to extricate the three from the pharmacy to a police vehicle, one of the men was hit in the back of the head with a rock thrown from the crowd. Police were forced to use tear gas to disperse the angry, shouting mob, which included children.

Under Jamaican law a person can be sentenced to up to nine years in prison if caught having consensual gay sex. Gay rights groups have long branded the island nation as antigay.

"Jamaica has lost its way if men think they can openly flaunt being gay without any consequences," a woman told the Observer. "We don't want that kind of open gay life in this country." (The Advocate)