[UPDATED] Couva pensioner brutally stabbed to death in shocking home invasion

Couva pensioner Aamina Mohammed, 68, was brutally killed during a home invasion on Saturday night, leaving her family devastated and the community outraged.

Mohammed and her husband Nizam Mohammed, 74, met in their teenage years as they grew up in Siparia Old Road, Siparia. They immediately fell in love, and tied the knot in 1977.
They moved to Charlieville before eventually settling in Nancy Street, Lisa's Gardens, Couva, with their son Ahmad, now 46, and daughter Fatima, 44, in 1986.

Now retired, Mohammed spent her days at home with her husband of almost 50 years.

Saturday was a typical weekend day as she washed clothes in the afternoon. As she hung out the clothes to dry, she warned Ahmad not to leave any garbage by the front gate as he was leaving home.

At dinner time, she stood in her kitchen taking out Nizam's food as he sat in front of the television to watch the news, unaware that in a few minutes, they would be victims of a violent attack that would propel them into the headlines.

Before the first commercial break of the newscast, two men dressed in dark clothing, wearing a respirator and a bandana over their faces, broke into the house and grabbed a knife from the kitchen, which they used to corral Mohammed and her husband into the living room.

There, Ahmad told reporters on Sunday, the assailants cut the sheets covering the couches into makeshift bindings to tie the couple before turning off the lights.

Ahmad, who spoke on behalf of his father, who was too distraught for an interview, said the assailants began demanding money and jewellery.

He said his mother took them into the bedroom. A few moments later, he said, the men ran out of the house.
His father called out to Mohammed but didn't hear her respond. He said his father was able to wriggle his way out of his bindings and went into the bedroom, where he found her unresponsive on the bed, bleeding from the neck.

Ahmad was near Grand Bazaar when his father called to tell him what had happened. When he arrived, he said police were already at the house. He said he pushed past them and lifted his mother to take her to the Couva Health Facility, because the ambulance was too far away.

"(At this point) I am thinking she's still alive, but in reality, she had already passed over. By the time I tried to cradle her neck, it was just muscle tissue coming out in my hand and she was very heavy. Her skin was still warm, but that's basically just it."

Mohammed was put in a police vehicle and taken the the facility, where she was pronounced dead at 8.38 pm. Doctors said she had been stabbed four times in the neck.

"These (expletive) and them came here, they get money, they get jewellery and they still had to kill the lady?"

Ahmad said the family is still trying to figure out why, despite giving the attackers' what they demanded, Mohammed was killed. Describing his mother as a gentle, passive woman, he said it was unlikely she would have tried to fight off the bandits.

Ahmad said the family still questions what put the couple in the attackers' crosshairs. He said they withdrew about $10,000 from the bank on December 6, but he did not believe this could have been what triggered it.

However, police said one of the attackers allegedly said a relative had owed him a large sum of money for some time.

While Ahmad may never find out exactly why they were targeted, he knows for certain crime is out of control, "When you could have people making jail saying them ain't fraid that, 'I make jail already.' When you could snuff somebody's life out after you come and you get money and jewellery – wow.
"These people have no remorse, they have no care. They don't believe in an afterlife. They don't believe in judgment."

Sitting on their porch with gates locked shut, neighbours said they were shocked and angered.

One elderly neighbour, who did not wish to be named, said Mohammed and her family were good people and were loved by all in the community.

Sitting beside her, her son said he was now planning to instal burglar-proofing around the windows and doors – a suggestion which further angered his mother.

"I living here my whole life, why I going to jail myself in here?"

"Burglar proofing is not enough. They (the Mohammeds) had burglar proof."

Another neighbour quickly locked her gate when she saw Newsday and admitted she was uncertain if we were thieves returning to the area. She said she was robbed a few weeks ago, mere feet from her house.

Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation chairman Ryan Rampersad called on the Police Commissioner and National Security Minister to address safety concerns in the municipality and country.

"The residents of Couva and most definitely all of Trinidad and Tobago deserve to feel safe in their homes, and the authorities must take immediate steps to prevent further incidents," his release said.

Rampersad also called for the reopening of the Brasso and San Rafael police stations, which have been closed for years and left large areas vulnerable to crime.

According to the police service's website,  1,246 home break-ins had been reported for the year up to October. Of these, 252 were in the Central Division, making it the second most susceptible policing region behind the Northern Division, which had 324. The third highest occurrence was in the Southern Division with 140, followed by Tobago with 119 and Port of Spain with 108.

The South Western Division had the lowest number of home break-ins and burglaries sitting at 66, with Eastern Division just behind with 68 and followed by Western Division with 72.

TT surpassed its second-highest annual murder toll on December 13 when it hit 580. In 2023 the country recorded 577 murders, second only to 2022, which saw 605 people killed.

This story has been adjusted to include additional details. See original post below.

A 68-year-old Couva woman was brutally killed during a home invasion on Saturday night.

Aamina Mohammed, 68, was at her Nancy Street, Lisa's Gardens, Couva home taking out food for her husband Nazem, 74, shortly after 7 pm when two masked bandits dressed in dark clothing broke into the house.

Police were told the men tied up the couple and demanded money. One of the men reportedly accused one of the victims' relatives of having owed them money for some time.

The assailants then took off the lights and took Mohammed into a bedroom before leaving.

Mohammed's husband was able to free himself and despite calling out for her, she did not respond.

He found her bound and lying on their bed, bleeding from her neck.

He contacted his son Ahmad and police.

Mohammed was taken to the Couva Health Facility where she was pronounced dead at 8.38 pm.

Doctors told police she was stabbed multiple times in her neck.

Investigations are ongoing.

Visiting the home on Sunday morning, her son told Newsday the family was distraught over the incident. He said the assailants made away with around $10,000 and some jewellery.

"The crime is out of control when you could have people making jail saying them ain't fraid that. 'I make jail already.' When you could snuff somebody's life out after you come and you get money and jewellery, wow. These people have no remorse, they have no care. They don't believe in an afterlife. They don't believe in judgement."

He said his parents both grew up in Siparia Old Road and have been together since she was about 17 years old. He said they were inseparable and his father was not dealing well with the tragedy.

Sitting on their porch with gates locked shut, neighbours said they were shocked and angered by the incident.

One elderly neighbour, who did not wish to give her name, said Mohammed and her family were good people and were loved by all in the community.