Chaguanas residents face off with police, army

TENSIONS were high at Circular Drive in Crown Trace, Enterprise, Chaguanas yesterday as dozens of mourners returning from the funeral of 22-year-old Keon Moore, blocked roads in a series of fiery protests throughout central.

Shortly after 4 pm yesterday, mourners, many still dressed in traditional Islamic wear for Moore’s funeral, returned to their homes and burned, tyres and other debris, causing traffic to grind to a halt for almost 15 minutes.

Residents explained the protest was triggered by footage of Moore’s death by officers of the Central Division, which was being circulated on social media yesterday. They said the video was evidence of the officers’ carelessness, and they were prepared to stage other protests if necessary.

However, Central Division police and TT Regiment soldiers went to the area and the protestors left.

Newsday spoke with Moore’s wife who was identified only as “Fatima”. She said she is convinced her husband was innocent and denied reports that he had a weapon.

She emotionally recalled her husband’s last minutes and said she was on the phone with him and heard the gunshots as they hit the vehicle and his body.

Despite a brief, heated exchange with residents, the presence of police and soldiers along Circular Drive restored some temporary order to the community. But less than 20 minutes later, they were called away to Longdenville, where residents burned debris at the corner of Tobago Road and the Southern Main Road.

One man in his early thirties was arrested by Central Division police, and sources said they will remain on high alert throughout the weekend in the Enterprise and wider Chaguanas areas.

In an unrelated incident, a female worshipper of the Masjid-Ul-Khaleefa mosque in Lamont Road, Longdenville was shot and wounded during, what police are describing as, a botched assassination attempt on her husband.

According to reports, the woman and her husband were leaving the mosque at around 2.20 pm when the vehicle they were driving in was shot at by unseen attackers.

The woman was shot once in her forearm, while the man escaped unharmed. Police were called and the woman was taken to the Chaguanas health facility. Her husband was believed to be the target of the attack.

Director of the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) David West says an investigation has been launched into the circumstances surrounding Moore’s shooting near the Couva Children’s Hospital on Wednesday.

West told Newsday yesterday, the authority was taking the matter “very seriously” and promised a thorough investigation. He said he saw the video footage of the shooting and urged the person who filmed it to come forward and provide any additional information at the PCA’s office at the Port of Spain International Waterfront.