Argyle community healing after murders

IT’S a quiet day in Argyle, Tobago. Some residents are relaxing in their galleries, while others sit near the sea, enjoying the soothing sound of the waves crashing.

A few others are gathered at a junction to lime and share stories and some have stopped by a roadside vendor for fresh fruits and snacks.

This peaceful atmosphere and strong sense of community were the norm there until three murders shattered the tranquility and instilled fear recently.

But now, more than two months later, the community feels as though it has returned to peace.

The murders began with the killing of Beetham Gardens resident Victoria “Dolly Boss” Guerra on August 5. She was liming at Lammy Road, Argyle and was shot multiple times. She later died at the Roxborough Hospital. Police suspected her killing was linked to an ongoing gang war.

Then, on September 20, Tobagonian Brandon Edwards was shot and killed near his home, also on Lammy Road. He was 27 and a sanitation worker.

And on September 23, Nicholas “Daddy T” Mitchell was shot and killed at his home. He was 32.

His mother, Ann Marie Mitchell, told Newsday that despite not knowing him to be involved in any illegal activity, she was not surprised by his death, as he was “troublesome and miserable.”

Also in August, Dr Iyana Parisienne-James, a medical doctor, was shot outside a supermarket in Argyle. She was taken to hospital and survived. Police said she was not the intended target. Her husband was shopping at the time and she was in their car with their child. Parisienne-James shielded her one-year-old daughter from the attack.

After Guerra’s murder, there was talk of a “hit list” including the names of people from Argyle.

Mitchell’s mother said she believed her son was one of the people “marked for death” from the list. Grieving families, neighbours and concerned residents held a candlelight vigil to “bring back the peace” in September.

Newsday visited Argyle on October 29 and spoke to some residents, who said the community is healing.

Victim’s mother: Community shootings ‘rocked me’

Charmaine Edwards, mother of Brandon Edwards, said life has been hard since her son’s passing. She said sometimes she feels she is okay, but other times, that is not the case.

“Sometimes I sit and think, ‘He might pass just now. I might see him passing just now.’ Then I have to tell myself, ‘Snap out of that! Are you crazy? He’s dead and gone,’” she said.

She recalled already dealing with the shock of another shooting death near her home.

“You see Dolly Boss killing? It rocked the community, I’m not going to lie.

“That rocked me, because I was there saying, ‘Shooting? Shooting happening on Lammy Road?’ and they said yes.”

She added, “Who come for her, nobody knows. It was the first time I see her.”

Having lived there all her life, Edwards, 62, said this type of violence was uncommon in Argyle.

“Next thing I hear is my child dead. I say, ‘What the hell is this?’”

She said on the night of her son’s murder, her son-in-law kept trying to call her to come downstairs. She saw police outside, but took her time.

“Then he come and pound down my door telling me come now…

“I come outside and see my child dead on the ground. Oh, boy,” she said as she sighed deeply and held her face.

She said to this day, she has no idea why he was targeted.

“Just yesterday, I asked what the reason was. I say, ‘Brandon, if there was something that you did, come and tell me in a dream.’ I never get anything (a response).”

She said he was so loved in the community that other residents cried over his death just as much as she did.

“If he see you five times, he will tell you good evening five times. He was not rude.”

She said with certainty that he was in no way linked to Guerra’s killing.

“Argyle was just such a nice and peaceful place,” she said, after a long pause.

But lately, she said things feel like they are “back to normal.

“When it had just happened, I didn’t even want to come back home. I spent two weeks by my sister.

“But then I said, ‘You can’t run from your home,’ and then when I returned, there was nothing (going on). No one liming, no one walking on the road…People were fearful and just staying inside.

“But we are okay now.”

‘Gun violence new to Argyle’

An elderly man and woman told Newsday they have lived in Argyle all their lives, and the introduction of gun violence to the generally peaceful community has been concerning.

The woman said, “Sometimes, 20 years pass before you hear anybody get killed up here. And then in those circumstances, it would be that they got chopped or something.”

But she said apart from Argyle, the overall increase in crime in Tobago has been concerning to her.

“I really was also a bit fearful after these Argyle murders, but it seems like we are catching back ourselves now.”

She added, “I know people say crime and these things will begin to catch up everywhere eventually but it has still been such a shock.”

The island’s murder toll currently stands at 25.

The man chimed in saying he, too, was shocked, and wondered what was the cause.

But he said since the three murders, he has noticed an increased police presence in the area.

“They working,” he said. “We see them often and that is kind of helping us feel a bit safer after everything as well.”

As he gestured around the area, he said, “You see how it’s quiet and peaceful right now? This is how we know it to be.”

Both said they hope this is sustained.

“I don’t know what’s going on in Tobago,” the woman said. “It has never been like this before.”

Another elderly woman said she generally did not go out often, but after the killings, that decreased even more.

“Everybody just want to feel safe, you know,” she said.

‘People wanted to get home fast’

A fruit and vegetable vendor on Windward Road said he usually closes up after 7pm. But after the three murders, he said the area became a ghost town from as early as 5pm.

“Nobody was coming to buy anything too late. Everybody just wanted to be inside, because there was fear.”

His friend added that the fear was not just concerning Lammy Road but Argyle entirely.

The vendor continued, “I see people come and buy their goods and jump back into their vehicle so quickly that they forget their goods here by me and have to come back.

His friend said regardless of the time, people in Argyle would usually be liming together.

“But all of that just stop. Everybody just started watching their back.”

Both men also spoke of an increased police presence.

“We seeing them 24-0,” the vendor said.

“Before that, we were getting normal patrol and thing. But now, sometimes, you see how we just sitting here, two police vehicles would pass down – one marked and one unmarked, a next one would go in another road…”

He, too, concluded that “everything is back to normal,” but is concerned about “a couple bad seeds…

“There are bad seeds coming into the area and trying to give us a bad reputation. But now, we catching back weself.”

Village council: Some still live in fear

Vice chairman of the Argyle Village Council Delmond Edwards said not everyone had got over the killings.

But he said they have made many strides in returning to the “close-knit community that Argyle always was.”

He recalled some people becoming distrustful of other residents after the murders.

“Some of them were just looking at certain people different because of how everything unfolded. But as time went by, the shared grief almost brought back everyone even closer than before.

“There are still people who still live in fear that something could happen again. There was this rumour, which hasn’t been verified, that there was a hit list (after Guerra’s murder).

“But since then, we haven’t seen any other incident or any other tragedy unfold.”

He said in addition to increased patrols, police have also been “liaising with the community a little bit more.

“But I don’t think that fear will fully go away any time soon. It’s not that easy to go back to your comfort zone.

“People have been practising a little bit more safety, and we have seen the impact of the police actually playing a role in trying to make people safe again.

“But it will take time for the community to heal. It will take time to bring back that sense of normalcy.”

Police: Patrols ramped up throughout island

Insp Alicia Piggot told Newsday she was pleased to hear Argyle residents were pleased with the police’s efforts. She said owing to the increasing crime in Tobago, the police had ramped up operations across the island.

“We have more patrols, more roadblocks, and because it is a tourist site, you also don’t want anything to happen (to visitors too).”

She said investigations into the murders are ongoing.

“There are no updates I can share at this time. But I always say with murders, you have to dot your Is and cross your Ts in these investigations.

“But I am happy to hear that the residents are happy with the work the police have been doing.”