[UPDATED] Three men killed in one hour

THREE murders took place across Trinidad and Tobago within an hour on the night of September 20, with one taking place in Tobago and two occurring minutes apart in Maloney. In response, MP for Arouca/Maloney Camille Robinson-Regis urged parents and the community to encourage young people to get involved in positive activities.

“The government has made opportunities available for them,” she said. “If they are not taking advantage of these opportunities, we say to parents and the community to encourage them to do the right thing.”

The first killing occurred around 10.45 pm when an unidentified victim who was liming on the third floor of Building 5 left the group he was with.

Shortly after, residents reported hearing loud explosions and went to investigate, they found the man bleeding from gunshot wounds. An ambulance was called, and the victim was taken to the Arima Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Newsday visited the area around lunchtime, but residents were tight-lipped. One man, who wished to remain anonymous, said he heard the gunshots while in bed but did not investigate.

“At that hour, young people liming and some of them looking for trouble,” he said.

Officers processed the scene but did not recover any evidence. The deceased has not yet been identified, and Homicide Region 2 is continuing its investigation.

About 15 minutes later, across from Building 5, 30-year-old Cyril Greaves, a resident of Building 11 Apt 1-1, originally from Eastern Quarry, Laventille, was shot and killed.

Reports say around 11 pm, police received a call from the command centre about loud explosions heard near the building. When officers arrived, they found Greaves lying motionless, suffering from a gunshot wound to the head, with blood coming from his nose and ears.

The scene was processed, and swabs from both of Greaves' hands were taken, along with other samples. Additionally, two 9mm spent shells were recovered, as well as Greaves' Samsung mobile phone.

Investigations into his killing are ongoing and it remains unclear if the two incidents are linked.

Speaking to Newsday via phone on September 21, Robinson-Regis acknowledged the killings. She said the Maloney police are “actively dealing” with the situation.

“We will continue to ensure programmes and job opportunities are available in the Maloney area. As MP for the area, I have made every effort to ensure the residents of Maloney have all the facilities necessary for a comfortable life. However, there will always be individuals who choose a different path.”

Responding to residents' concerns expressed to Newsday during an earlier visit about young people's involvement in crime, Robinson-Regis said there are several programme are many opportunities for activities, including a shopping complex, library, church and post office. Maloney is like a city in itself. Residents don’t need to leave to access anything. Yet, in any society or village, there will always be people who find evil work for their idle hands.”

She added some young people do not want to work and refuse to take advantage of the available activities.

“The most we can do is ensure opportunities are provided for those who want to be productive and follow the straight and narrow path.”

Despite the shootings on September 20, Robinson-Regis emphasised many young people in the area are thriving and benefiting from the opportunities available to them.

“The primary school has performed exceptionally well in the SEA exams and students who completed CXC and CAPE have excelled, with some placing very high. We celebrate these achievements.”

Robinson-Regis reiterated her call for the community and families to work together to encourage and support misled youths.

“We need to show them the value of constructive paths and the positive outcomes that can result from hard work and dedication.”

On September 1, Maloney resident Vinod Hamid, 41, was shot dead in his garage. Officers received a call about a shooting around 5.45 pm, when they arrived, they found a crowd gathered in the road.

Hamid was at home sitting in his garage when he was shot. A neighbour who heard the sound checked and found him bleeding on the ground. A resident told officers when they arrive Hamid was taken to the Arima hospital.

Police said they faced challenges in gathering information as residents were uncooperative and hostile.

On May 15, a Maloney business owner chased a murder suspect and managed to chop him several times after a shooting in his store.

Michael Junior Augustine, 34, was at a mini-mart in Maloney Gardens when a man dressed in black approached him and opened fire. Augustine ran into the owner's home, but the suspect followed him inside and fired several more shots.

The mini-mart owner then confronted the gunman with a cutlass, managing to chop him several times before the suspect fled.

On May 25, two cousins, 21-year-old Micah Shavel Alfred and 27-year-old Jahvill Joseph, were shot and killed minutes apart in Maloney by an unknown assailant.

Alfred was having his hair cut at a nearby barbershop when a silver Kia car pulled up and the assailant opened fire. Alfred ran inside the barber’s house but collapsed from his injuries.

The gunman then drove a short distance away, where he shot Joseph as he stood in front of a mini-mart. The assailant told Joseph, “Don’t move,” before shooting him multiple times.

The gunman then returned to the waiting car and drove off.

Around 10.28 pm on September 20, Brandon Edwards, 27, of Argyle, Tobago, was shot and killed.

Edwards, a sanitation worker, had left a lime at Breadfruit Alley and was walking home when he was killed.

Officers on patrol got a call from the Roxborough Police Station about reports of loud explosions at Lammy Road, Argyle.

When officers arrived, they found Edwards’ lifeless body on the roadway. He was wearing a dark blue T-shirt, black three-quarter jeans and black and white slippers.

His body had multiple gunshot wounds and crime scene officers processed the area.

The DMO arrived and examined the body and pronounced him dead at 1.30 am on September 21 and ordered his body be taken to the Scarborough General Hospital Mortuary pending a post-mortem examination.

This story was originally published with the title "2 men shot, killed in Maloney minutes apart" and has been adjusted to include additional details. See original post below.

TWO MEN were shot and killed minutes apart in Maloney on Friday night.

The first incident occurred around 10.45 pm. An unidentified victim was liming on the third floor of Building 5 in Maloney Gardens before leaving.

Moment after residents reported hearing loud explosions and went to investigate the source of the sounds, where they found the man bleeding from gunshot wounds.

An ambulance was called and the man was taken to Arima Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Newsday visited the area around lunchtime, but residents were tight-lipped. One man, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said he was in bed when he heard the gunshots but did not investigate the noise.

“At that hour, those young people are liming, and some of them are looking for trouble,” he remarked.

Officers processed the scene but did not recover any evidence. The deceased has not yet been identified, and Homicide Region 2 is continuing investigation.

About 15 minutes later, across from Building 5, Cyril Greaves, 30, of Building 11 Apt 1-1 in West Maloney Gardens and originally from LP 51 Eastern Quarry, Laventille, was shot and killed.

Reports say around 11 pm, police in the area got a call from the Command Centre about loud explosions near the building.

When officers arrived, they found Greaves lying motionless, suffering from a gunshot wound to the head, with blood coming from his nose and ears.

The scene was processed, and swabs from both of Greaves' hands, along with other samples, were taken.

Two 9mm spent shells were recovered, as well as Greaves' Samsung mobile phone.

Investigations into his killing are ongoing, and it remains unclear if the two incidents are linked.