Man shot dead had refused to join gang

BEVON Woods, who was shot dead on Jackson Hill, east Port of Spain, on May 1, had been asked to join a gang before his death.

His uncle Dr Anthony Woods told the media outside the Forensic Science Centre in St James that Woods had declined the invitation.

“I think his friends were encouraging him to join gangs, Sixx and Seven. That’s what he told me, but he said that's not his part of thing. So I don't know if that caused the problem.”

Police believe Woods' murder is related to an ongoing gang war in that part of the city.

Woods, 34, was walking along Jackson Hill, Laventille Road around 2.20 pm, when gunshots were reported. Nearby residents found him lying in the road, bleeding from bullet wounds.

Woods’ uncle described the escalating gang war in Port of Spain as “a bunch of senselessness.

“They are numbering themselves, saying ‘Sixx, Seven or Eight.’ I wonder where they are counting to go."

Anthony Woods suggested young men were getting involved in gangs because: “I think there's a lack of fatherhood. I think the father structure is not there to support them and I think they are lacking manhood to know what they are really for.

“The mother might try, but the father lends support, and together we can raise a child better.”

He predicted things will only get worse if there are no societal interventions to address broken families and their effect on young men.

“It's a family problem, and if they don't (fix it), it's going to be more out of control. It's going to be worse. It's not getting better, and I'm seeing it.

“This is my hometown and it's getting worse. I advise my friends when they’re here to be safe. It's a beautiful country, but our crime is too much for a small country.”