Maxi taxi driver murdered during robbery

A 57-year-old maxi taxi driver was shot dead during a robbery, raising the murder toll for the year to 472. Dead is Brandon Dupigny of Coalmine, Sangre Grande. Reports are that he was driving his maxi taxi along the Priority Bus Route when on reaching St John’s Road in St Augustine, one of his passengers tried to rob the maxi.

A struggle broke out between Dupigny and the bandit and Dupigny was shot. The maxi also collided with a car while the bandit escaped. Dupigny died on the scene. Relatives yesterday described him as a generous, kind-hearted person who loved his family, sports and God. He was originally from Bournes Road, St James, but married and moved to Sangre Grande about 18 years ago. Three years later, he began working as a maxi taxi driver. He was a devoted member of the New Testament Church of God in Coalmine, Sangre Grande, and an avid sports fan. His favourite sport was football.

“He loved football and had been a coach and a manager for many football teams in the country,” said a relative. “Every sport event we had at church, he would be the one organising it. He would be making sure that all the seats and tents would be in the right place, he would direct people where to put coolers. At his church, he was the sports master.”

President of the Route 2 Maxi Taxi Association Linus Phillip appealed to commuters and drivers to be extra vigilant while on the road during the Christmas and Carnival seasons, saying anyone could be a target.

“Around this time there is usually a spike in the amount of robberies that occur on the Bus Route, and even in City Gate itself. People tend to walk around with more money around these times, so it is usually a tough period. Sometimes the presence of the police works, and sometimes it doesn’t. At times you could have just gotten out of a road block and could still get robbed.” He said while everyone was responsible for their safety, the police could better assist by raising the detection rate.

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