PCA sends file on 2018 Laventille police killings to DPP

Almost two years after police shot and killed five people, including two teens, the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) has finished its enquiry and has forwarded the report to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), said a media release from the authority on Tuesday.

On October 25, 2018, Shakeem Francois, 15; Kadeem Phillip, 17; Shaundell St Clair, 20; Mishack Douglas, 22 and Nicholas Barker, 23, were shot by members of the Inter Agency Task Force while playing cards at a house in Trou Macaque, Laventille.

The killings prompted outcry from the relatives and the community.

Police accounts said officers involved in the shooting were fired at first by one of the men.

The media release said the findings of the report gathered by the investigators were forwarded to the DPP in keeping with Section 30 (1) of the PCA Chapter.

"Our investigations and recommendations should provide assurance to both the public and Police that deaths or serious injuries that happen during or following police contact would be properly handled," the release said.