Security guard killed travelling in 'strange car'

POLICE are working on the theory that murdered security guard Akeel Charles was killed because gunmen opened fire on a vehicle that was not known to the area.

Charles, 24 was declared dead on arrival at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex on Thursday after he and a taxi-driver were shot while travelling along Carapo Main Road on Wednesday night.

Police said, around 11.25 pm on Wednesday, Charles of Henderson Street, Sangre Grande, hired the driver in El Socorro and asked to be taken to Carapo and back.

While driving on Carapo Main Road, police said, a white Nissan B14 passed by and the occupants shot at the car.

The driver, of La Canoa, Santa Cruz, was shot in the buttocks and drove himself and Charles to hospital where Charles was declared dead on arrival.

Charles, police said, was shot twice, once to the right temple, and upper left arm and was declared dead on arrival.

The driver was shot in the buttocks and is listed in a stable condition.

Police said, based on their victimology reports, none of the men were known to be involved in any criminal activities. Charles, police said, went to collect something in the area.

Another theory is that he was set up by whoever he went to collect the items from. This theory is less likely, police said, as Charles did not get the chance to meet with whomever he was supposed to.

The random shooting of the vehicle is being given more consideration after three people were killed in Carapo earlier this year, in what police said was a case of gunmen opening fire on a “strange car.”

On January 28, brothers Curtis Dobson, 31, Justin Paul, 25, and Paul’s girlfriend Shalini Shivnanand, 25 were killed when they visited Carapo to drop off Dobson.

The couple lived at Temple Street, Chanka Trace, El Socorro while Dobson lived at Peytonville Road, Carapo.

The three were shot at Rose Drive, Carapo at around 2.50 pm on January 28. Police at the time believed that the three made a wrong turn in Carapo and were ambushed and killed. Shivnanand was the driver and Dobson was the back seat passenger.

Gunmen opening fire on unknown vehicles is not uncommon. In 2019, Dawn Grant of Morvant was killed when two gunmen opened fire on a vehicle she was in. The vehicle was ambushed after dropping off KFC workers in John John, Laventille at around 1. 15 am on July 18, 2019.