[UPDATED] Community shocked as ex-fireman killed outside Chaguanas bar

The shooting death of ex-fireman Mervyn Prescott on Monday night outside a bar in Charlieville, Chaguanas, sparked outrage by residents and relatives, saying the killer took the life of an innocent man.

"Why can’t people live in peace?" his bereaved wife Maria Bruce, 72, said on Tuesday.

Prescott, a father of two, turned 76 in February.

Bruce spoke briefly to Newsday at the family’s home at Savannah Heights in Charlieville. The mother of two said people are killing people anywhere.

"You are in your house, and they are killing you. You are on the road, and they are killing. Look at what happened to that 96-year-old woman," Bruce said, referring to Siparia resident Utilda "Miss Tilda" Joseph, who was killed over the weekend in her home.

"I don’t know who are making these children (killers). It must be the Devil who is making them."

Police said around 7 pm on Monday, Prescott was standing and looking at the NLCB Play Whe chart in front of Jai’s bar at Caroni Savannah Road, about two minutes’ drive from his home.

The unknown man accosted Prescott at the Play Whe booth near the front door.

They struggled, and Prescott was shot. He collapsed and lost consciousness. He was later taken to the Chaguanas health facility, where a doctor declared him dead.

The gunman got into Prescott’s black Honda Vezel car, which was parked nearby. He drove about 500 feet, but then the car stalled. The gunman got out and ran off.

A bar worker called the police and Central Division officers, including Sgt Thompson and PCs Vialva, Abraham and Baksh, responded. Homicide Bureau Region III police, among them Sgts Cielto and Forbes, and PC Marash, also visited the scene and spoke to several people.

CCTV footage showed the killer, who was wearing a black hoodie and a facemask.

Prescott’s stepson, Marlon Bruce, spoke highly of his stepfather, who many people knew as "Precko."

"I consider him my father. He had been living with my mother for 35 years. He built this house from scratch. He would normally to going out the road by the bar to play a mark," Marlon said.

"He left home shortly before 7 pm. He would normally buy a beer and wait for the results. He was a cool person. When he is at home, he would always be in the yard seeing about the plants."

Prescott did not have any ailments, and the killing shocked the family.

Marlon said, "He was a healthy man. If anything, we would have expected him to die naturally when his time comes."

"He had about $400 on him. The killer did not take it. It seems the killer wanted the car."

From what the family was told, three shots rang out. A bullet seemed to have entered and exited his left leg.

At the bar, a worker referred to him as a regular customer. The worker described Prescott as a quiet man who often bought a beer while waiting for the Play Whe results.

"Sometimes, he would take more than half an hour to drink it. I wasn’t here when the shooting happened. Maybe if I was here, I would have been in front talking to him," said the man who asked to remain anonymous.

"I was out of a job for a while. I did not rob or kill anybody during that period. These people (criminals) need to make something out of their lives."

An autopsy is expected to be done at the Forensic Sciences Centre in St James during the week.

This story was originally published with the title
"Chaguanas pensioner killed outside bar" and has been adjusted to include additional details. See original post below.

A man shot and killed a 78-year-old Chaguanas man on Monday night outside a bar.

Dead is Mervyn Prescott, a pensioner who lived at Savannah Heights in Charlieville.

Police said around 7 pm on Monday, Prescott was standing and looking at the Play Whe chart in front of Jai’s bar at Caroni Savannah Road in Chaguanas.

The unknown man accosted Prescott at the Play Whe booth near the front door.

They struggled, and Prescott was hit. He collapsed and lost consciousness. He was later taken to the Chaguanas health facility, where a doctor declared him dead.

The gunman got into Prescott’s black Honda Vezel car, which was parked nearby. He drove about 500 feet, but then the car stalled. The gunman got out and ran off.

A bar worker called thepolice andCentral Division officers , including Sgt Thompson and PCs Vialva, Abraham and Baksh, responded. Homicide Bureau Region III police, among them Sgts Cielto and Forbes, and PC Marash, also visited the scene and spoke to several people.

CCTV footage showed the killer, who was wearing a black hoodie and a facemask.

Investigations are ongoing.