Murders, violence, 'a public health emergency' says Rowley

Murders and shootings kept the police busy on Saturday.

As early as 3.20 am, the country awoke to gory images of police removing the bodies of three three young men from a car in the capital city after a confrontation, and another police killing in Second Caledonia, Morvant.

The bloodshed saw murders in Valencia, Arouca and Debe, and the country was yet again jolted after four young men were shot dead at the scenic Damien Bay on the North Coast.

The spiralling violence did not escape the attention of Prime Minister Dr Rowley, as he spoke to reporters at Piarco airport ahead of his trip to Suriname to attend a Caricom heads of government meeting.

Rowley made reference to the fatal police shooting in Port of Spain and the quadruple murders saying he only had preliminary information.

"I think in TT the time has come for us to declare violence as a public health emergency and we need to find solutions for treating with violence in our population.

"If there was a disease that was killing people the way violence is affecting the population you would have no difficulty in labelling it a public health emergency."

Rowley said the time had come to focus on the issue of violence which is in the home, school, roadway.

"Public safety and public security," he said, from standpoint of national unease had pushed itself as the "number one concern in the country" ahead of education which usually got the biggest budget and violence should be declared "a public health emergency."

He said half of the people who offer themselves as the solution in fighting the criminal scourge "are themselves contributors to the problem," without giving any details.

Asked to explain the definition of declaring violence as a public health emergency, the Prime Minister said he would leave that for another time.

There were seven murders overnight Saturday, even as a victim from a shooting overnight Thursday was identified.

On the North Coast, police said four young men of Santa Cruz were killed after gunmen opened fire on a group of six people, including two women. (Read article here)

The women, both from Cantaro Village, Santa Cruz, were uninjured while the men were shot in the head and body.

The dead are Keron Pope, 32, of Blackford Street, Elijah Torrel, 18, of Maraj Trace, Keron "Mincie" Andrews of Pipiol Road, and Carlton "CJ Dan", 22, of Lynch Avenue.

The women are Shinika Timothy, 18, and 26-year-old Telisa Charles.

In Arouca, an 84-year-old man of Spring Road, was allegedly beaten to death with a hammer by his stepson over land dispute. The suspect still at large.

In the San Fernando police district, Curtis Herriot, of Mayo Village, Mayo was shot dead in his van along the Solomon Hochoy Highway extension in Debe.

Also, Sangre Grande police are investigating the shooting deaths of two men, one of whom remains unidentified.

Early Saturday, police received a report, at about 6.55 am, of a body in Valencia and went to Sawmill Road, off Valencia Old Road when they found a dead man, with a gunshot wound to the head.

Police said the man is of mixed descent, dark brown and approximately six feet tall. He was wearing a black T-shirt, light blue long jeans, a black fabric belt and grey slippers.

In the second case, police said a man found dead along Madoosingh Drive, Ojoe Road, Sangre Grande on Friday morning has been identified.

Police said the man is Moussa Walker, also called Winston Peter Walker, 34, of Cedar Hill Trace, Claxton Bay. Police said Walker also had addresses at Debe Village, Dow Village and Bayshore, Marabella.

An officer who lives in the area told police she heard gunshots, at about 11.57 pm on June 30, but did not investigate. Around 5.30 am on Friday, another neighbour told her that Walker’s body was seen near a parked white Hyundai Accent. After checking, she found Walker's body and contacted her colleagues at the Sangre Grande station.

In the two instances of fatal police killings, the police version has been questioned by eyewitnesses and residents and will now attract the attention of the Police Complaints Authority.

The incident in Port of Spain triggered a wave of criticism and public outcry after numerous videos were shared on social media.

In that incident, police said they were pursuing a stolen car in Richplain, Diego Martin with two men and when they were about to intercept the car, the men fled and boarded another car with six people.

Police pursued the car from Diego Martin, along the Audrey Jeffers Highway, Wrightson Road onto Independence Square before it crashed into Republic Bank at the Chacon Street corner.

The bodies of three people, one of them a 17-year-old teen, was taken out of the car. Another 16-year-old was critically injured, and two others detained. Police claimed they found a Smith and Wesson pistol in the car.

According to a preliminary report from senior officers, police were pursuing a stolen AD Wagon, PDY 9161, around 3.20 am and were about to intercept the car when it was abandoned by two men.

The suspects got into another car, PDX 3306, a Toyota Aqua, with four other people and sped off. Police said there was reported exchange of gunfire in the Diego Martin district and police chased after the car along Wrightson Road, Port of Spain.

They summoned help from static patrols and several streets were blocked off under the active direct patrols grid system.

Police said the car swung onto Independence Square, near the Breakfast Shed, and turned off onto Independence Square, where they again diverted to the opposite lane driving in the wrong direction as their path was blocked by police.

Officers blocked the path near Republic Bank and on the opposite end. Police said the driver of the car attempted to swerve south on Chacon Street and crashed into the bank's western side.

Two people were shot dead in the back seat, one in the passenger seat and a fourth was injured by gunfire. Two others were arrested. The dead men have been identified as Isaiah Roberts, 17, Fabian Richards, Niko Williams, both in their 20s. The deceased are from Snake Valley, Laventille, Trou Macacque, Beetham Gardens. The fourth man who was critically injured has been identified as 16-year-old Malakai Glenn. Police said the two other suspects are in custody.

In the other police killing, around 6 am, residents of Cipriani Avenue, Second Caledonia reported police entering the home of Tristian Springer, also called Ratty, and ordering his girlfriend and another man to leave. Gunshots were heard and officers assigned to the North Eastern Division Task Force took away Springer who was still alive. He was declared dead at the Mt Hope hospital later.

According to residents. Springer, 24, had sued officers of the same unit for wrongful arrest after he was detained without charge. They said he recently came out of prison after getting bail on a robbery charge in the Chaguanas district.

Springer, the father of three girls, the youngest a two-month-old baby he never saw because he was in prison, was shot in his bed, residents said.

Police said they recovered a firearm in that incident, some US currency and arrested three other people. Residents said the money was found in another house where two people were held.

Janelle De Souza and Jensen La Vende contributed to this article.