A Penal family of five were tied up during a home invasion on the night of January 13.
Police said the father of the family locked the doors to his St Julien Trace home around 9.30 pm and retired to bed when he was awakened by his daughter’s screams around 10.45 pm.
He said he then saw four masked men dressed in dark clothing standing in his living room, armed with cutlasses. The assailants tied up the family and ransacked the house, taking $15,000 cash, jewellery, and cellphones before escaping in the man’s white Nissan Wingroad PCZ 7220.
A MASTER in the High Court has granted a 39-year-old man from Penal $80,000 surety bail, charged with the possession of a gun and ammunition.
On January 5, Cornelius Ali appeared before Master Kateisha Ambrose-Persadsingh, who granted the bail and adjourned the case to February 2.
The matter was also transferred to the Siparia Magistrates’ First Court.
South Western Division (SWD) police arrested Ali on January 3 and later charged him with the two offences.
Meanwhile, SWD Task Force officers, with assistance of officers from the Point Fortin CID, the Air Support Unit and members of the Defence Force, arrested three suspects during an operation carried out in the Point Fortin district, between 8 pm on January 5 and 1 am on January 6.
Police said two of the suspects, 40 and 26, were wanted in connection with state of emergency investigations. The third suspect, 34, was held for possession of ammunition. All three are from Point Fortin.
In the Southern Division, officers of the Mon Repos CID carried out an exercise between 10 am and 6 pm on January 5.
They arrested a 20-year-old man from California, in connection with several serious offences, including rape, grievous sexual assault, larceny and kidnapping.
THE body of Alan Singh, 63, was found in a bushy track a short distance from his Coqueran Drive home on December 31.
Police said Singh’s body was found shortly before 10 am about 100 feet from his home, where he lived alone. His body bore apparent wounds to the head and was found behind a Heritage Petroleum gathering station pump, covered with dry coconut branches.
Relatives said he was last seen alive by a cousin on December 29. Police said relatives went to visit him around 9.45 am and made the discovery after detecting a stench.
Singh was pronounced dead by a District Medical Officer, and an autopsy was ordered. Police are continuing investigations.
SWIFT action by South Western Division police led to the arrest of two Beetham Gardens men and a Barrackpore man who are suspected of shooting at a Penal man on the afternoon of December 6.
The Mohess Road man told police he was awakened around 1 pm by his dogs barking. Looking out a peep-hole in his door, he saw three men standing in his front yard. He then banged on the glass of his door with his hand, scaring the men off.
He jumped into his car and chased after the men, one of whom turned around and opened fire at him near the Matura Development Bridge while trying to hide behind a galvanised fence.
Police said officers received information that the men jumped into a white Kia Optima. Cpl Loubon and PC Ramsingh of the South Western Division Task Force responded and saw the car driving along Mohess Road Penal, in the opposite direction of the officers’ marked police vehicle.
On seeing the officers, the suspects reportedly turned around and sped off, attempting to evade the police. The officers chased the car and intercepted it near the recreation ground at Lalbeharry Trace, assisted by other police officers.
The men were arrested and swabbed for gunshot residue.
The Beetham Gardens suspects are 28 and 37, while the suspect from Papourie Road, Barrackpore is 26. All three remain in custody. Crime scene investigators retrieved two live and two spent nine-millimetre rounds in the car.
THE family of Siparia East/San Francique councillor Romona Victor has rejected an offer for a joint funeral for her and her common-law husband Rodney Ramsumair. Relatives said her service will be held on November 27 at Irwin Park, Siparia, from 1 pm.
Speaking to reporters on November 24, Victor’s father said her common-law husband’s father proposed the joint funeral, but the family had not made a decision at the time.
Siparia Mayor Doodnath Mayrhoo visited the family on November 24 and offered the family use of the park and that the Borough Corporation would provide facilities such as tents and chairs.
The 36-year-old UNC councillor’s decomposing body was found next to that of Ramsumair’s on November 23. A note at the scene from Ramsumair led investigators to believe he killed Victor before taking his own life.
An autopsy determined Victor died from blunt-force trauma to her head and neck, suggesting she may have been beaten to death. Police recovered a bottle of herbicide at the scene. An autopsy determined Ramsumair died from poisoning.
Francis told reporters the note, read to him by investigators, contained an apology from Ramsumair, who added he could not live without Victor.
His funeral was held on November 26 at Boodoo’s Chapel in Penal.
Victor’s parents described her 16-year relationship as complicated, with her father saying the couple would frequently fight and make up.
“Them would quarrel now, and time tomorrow…dey was like hog see mud. I telling allyuh. It was so until me and the boy father, both of we and all too get fed up of it,” he told reporters.
Victor’s murder has led to an outpouring of support to her family. The Prime Minister and Siparia MP Kamla Persad-Bissessar described her as a committed and compassionate public servant. She said the tragedy reinforced the importance of reaching out for help, and of ensuring that anyone facing quiet struggles feels supported, encouraged, and safe to come forward without fear or hesitation.
Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles said the incident transcended political lines and called for more protections for women who suffer domestic or gender-based violence.
A Penal man was acquitted of a series of criminal charges, including arson, by a San Fernando jury on November 18.
After deliberating for just under three hours at the Princes Town Judicial Centre, the jury found Sarabjit Harripersad not guilty of the charges alleging arson, malicious damage, assault and battery and resisting arrest connected to a May 10, 2024, incident at Bheemul Branch Trace, San Francique Road, Penal. Justice Lisa Ramsumair-Hinds presided over the trial. Harripersad was represented by attorneys Larry Williams, Enrique Singh and Alejandro Gocking.
Harripersad had been accused of setting fire to a house belonging to Mohanie Sankar, destroying a white Nissan Almera valued at $50,000, beating Ganesh Sankar and Rikson Andrews and resisting arrest. Throughout the trial, the defence relied heavily on what it called major contradictions among the prosecution’s witnesses.
Williams argued that the conflicting statements undermined the reliability of the State’s case and supported the defence’s position of denial and fabrication. Among the inconsistencies highlighted were disputes about where the alleged assault on Andrews occurred. Mohanie Sankar initially testified that Andrews was attacked outside near a shed, but later admitted the account she gave police – that the incident happened inside the house – was the correct version.
Andrews, however, said for the first time during cross-examination that the alleged attack took place outside. Other witnesses, including Ganesh and Jaiantie Sankar, said they saw no attack on Andrews.
The testimony surrounding the alleged attack on Ganesh Sankar also shifted. Mohanie told the court during cross-examination that she only repeated what Ganesh had told police and admitted she never witnessed the accused beating him. Ganesh claimed he was struck with a cutlass while trying to extinguish the fire, but Jaiantie contradicted that, admitting she never saw Ganesh attempt to put out any blaze, nor did he return to the front of the house while the family hid.
Witnesses also differed on where the accused supposedly poured gasoline. Mohanie testified that the accused poured gas into the back of the car and around the house; Jaiantie added that he poured fuel inside the home on a couch.
Ganesh claimed he saw gasoline poured into the back of the vehicle. Vedesh Ramoutar, the officer who responded, testified he never saw the accused pour gas anywhere and later acknowledged that the red container presented in evidence only resembled the one allegedly used. Additional contradictions included opposing descriptions of the accused’s voice, whether Mohanie was awake or asleep when the incident began, whether the accused showed signs of burns, who exited the house and where family members hid.
One witness said she first saw the accused revving a vehicle and attacking Andrews, while another stated the first time she saw him that night was when officers arrested him. The defence argued these discrepancies demonstrated that the accounts were unreliable and could not support a conviction.
State attorneys Charmaine Samuel and Davenand Ramsaran led the prosecution.
A teenager is now without her parents after the couple was shot and killed during an early morning home invasion at their Penal home on November 17.
An eyewitness who was already awake to prepare for work told Newsday that Raffeak, 51, and Babita Vialva, 40, were at their home on Penal Rock Road with their 19-year-old daughter when an unknown man pulled into their driveway in a car around 3 am. The witness said the assailant broke down the front door with a sledgehammer and entered.
“By the time I reach downstairs I hear the gun gone off and I gone back upstairs,” the witness said.
The couple’s daughter told investigators she woke up after hearing two loud explosions and exited her room to find her father bleeding on the ground and the gunman standing over her mother in the bedroom demanding money. She said the man and her mother told her to return to her room, following which she heard two more loud explosions.
The witness said relatives were alerted and went inside to find Babita dead in the bedroom and Raffeak clinging to life in the corridor. He died while being taken to the San Fernando General Hospital.
The daughter was unharmed and was being consoled by friends and relatives outside the home when Newsday visited the scene.
Investigators are working with the theory that the attack was a robbery that went wrong. However, relatives, who did not wish to be identified, said the attacker likely left empty-handed as the house was not ransacked.
Relatives described the attack as shocking and were perplexed as to why the family was targeted.
“Them don’t drink. Them don’t lime,” a male relative said.
Another male relative said Raffeak, who worked as a timberjack, was focused on building a life for his family and could only be found at work or home.
Raffeak’s employer, who did not wish to be identified, described him as a diligent employee.
“He was a die-hard worker. Straight to work and straight home. You could have never found him sit down in a bar, you’d never see him park up on the side of the road liming.”
A female relative said they would often have to beg the couple to go out to lime.
The relatives said they weren’t aware of the couple receiving any threats.
They said Raffeak was also the type of man who avoided confrontation and would simply stop speaking to anyone with whom he had a disagreement.
Babita Vialva, 40, and her husband Raffeak Vialva, 51, were killed at Penal Rock Road, Penal, on November 17. –
Neighbours were also shocked by the attack and could not believe such a fate befell the couple.
One woman told Newsday that while she was not very close with the family, Babita was always pleasant to her.
“This real upsetting. Them don’t do nobody nothing (sic),” another neighbour said.
Newsday understands South Western Division officers recovered an abandoned vehicle en route to the Vialvas’ home shortly after the incident and investigations are ongoing to determine if it is linked to the double homicide.
As homicide investigators processed the crime scene, the TT Police Service launched its Operation Festive Shield in the South Western Division in Penal Junction around midday.
Accompanying them was Penal Debe Regional Corporation (PDRC) Gowtam Maharaj, who said he would be visiting the family along with other members of the corporation to offer their support.
Quinam/Morne Diablo councillor visited the family and neighbours on November 17 and told Newsday the entire community has been traumatised.
“It’s really sad to see such a brutal impact of crime.”
“It’s a pretty serene, beautiful community where everybody looks for each other, being your neighbour’s keeper.”
Speaking with Newsday at the launch, South Western Division Snr Supt Kelvin Thompson said the operation would focus on enhancing safety for the Christmas and Carnival seasons. He said while police would be doing their part, citizens also need to be vigilant.
“Be wise, be sensible and if you see something, say something. I know there are trust issues but…if you don’t want to call 999, if you don’t want to call your district police, there still remains 555 and Crime Stoppers.”
The PDRC chairman hoped that the launch of Operation Festive Shield could help deter home invasions.
Last month Gracelyn Ramberan, 48, and her son Randy Rampersad, 25, were shot and killed during a home invasion at their Peterloo Street, Friendship Village home. Her 58-year-old husband and Rampersad’s 22-year-old wife were also shot but survived.
The attackers pried open the family home’s door around 2 am on October 10. Ramberan and her husband were shot in the head. Rampersad was shot in the back as he tried to flee.
Relatives believe the attack was linked to Rampersad’s affiliation with bad company.
On November 4, Vijay Ragoonanan, 53, was beaten and tied up along with his wife and five children during a home invasion just metres away from the Prime Minister’s private residence in Phillipine, La Romaine. The six intruders stormed his house around 3 am, kicking in his front door while claiming to be police. Although assaulted, the family survived the ordeal.
A PENAL COUPLE was gunned down inside their home during an early morning home invasion on November 17.
An eyewitness who had already woken to prepare for work told Newsday that Raffeak and Babita Vialva were at their home on Penal Rock Road with their 19-year-old daughter when an unknown man pulled into their driveway in a car around 3 am. The witness said the assailant broke down the front door and entered.
“By the time I reach downstairs, I hear the gun gone off and I gone back upstairs.”
The witness said there were about three distinct loud explosions. The witness said relatives were alerted and went inside to find Babita dead in the bedroom and Raffeak clinging to life in the corridor. He died while being taken to the hospital.
The couple’s daughter was unharmed and was being consoled by friends and relatives outside the home when Newsday visited the scene.
Investigators are working with the theory that the attack was a robbery that went wrong. However, relatives, who did not wish to be identified, said the attacker likely left empty-handed as the house was not ransacked.
A Penal mother has lost her second child after her six-week-old son died at their home on the evening of October 23.
Reports said the 40-year-old mother called the Penal Police Station around 6.30 pm to inform them of the death. The mother told investigators she last saw her son alive around 3.30 pm, lying in the bedroom. However, she found him unresponsive around 6.20 pm. She said he recently had issues breathing.
Having already lost a previous child who was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy after displaying similar symptoms, she said she took him to the Penal Health Centre on October 22 and was referred to the San Fernando General Hospital for an appointment date.
Spinal muscular atrophy is a genetic disorder that causes progressive muscle weakness. It can affect a person’s ability to breathe, swallow, walk, and crawl, with symptoms often beginning in infancy or childhood.
Investigators did not observe any signs of violence on the child’s body. He was pronounced dead by a district medical officer, and an autopsy was ordered.
A 22-year-old man was found not guilty of attempted murder, causing grievous bodily harm with intent, and malicious damage against a female complainant by a nine-member jury following a retrial at the O’Meara Judicial Centre on October 6.
The allegations stemmed from an incident around 4.40 am on July 9, 2023, near Zumba’s Bar, San Francique Road, Penal. The accused, whose name is withheld to protect the privacy of all parties, was arrested at his workplace on February 17, 2024.
The retrial began September 10, before Justice Sherene Murray-Bailey. The prosecution alleged that the accused physically assaulted the woman after a night out, causing multiple injuries, and damaged her cellphone. The defence maintained that the accused went to the victim’s home after receiving a distress call from her and was instead attacked by two men accompanying her.
During the trial, inconsistencies in the victim’s testimony were highlighted, and the defence questioned the absence of supporting evidence, such as CCTV footage and independent witness statements. The jury acquitted the accused of all charges.
Counsel Collin Elbourne and Janeil Chuck of the Public Defenders’ Department represented the accused, while prosecutors Chenelle Moe and Roger Hinds appeared for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The case underscored the efficiency of the Administration of Justice (Indictable Proceedings) Act (AJIPA), with proceedings concluding within 20 months of his arrest.
The 28-year-old labourer who was severely injured when a liquid petroleum gas (LPG) tank exploded at his home in Penal last week has died.
Bevaughn Joseph, of Sunrees Road, succumbed to his injuries at the San Fernando General Hospital on October 17.
Joseph had been warded in the intensive care unit since October 13, after a 20-pound gas cylinder exploded in the kitchen of his ground-floor apartment home.
Joseph underwent emergency surgery before his condition worsened.
A relative heard the explosion and, upon checking, saw Joseph and his apartment engulfed in flames.
Officers from the Mon Repos Fire Station were alerted, responded and extinguished the blaze.
Investigators later determined that the gas cylinder caused the explosion.
WPC Benjamin of the Penal Police Station is continuing investigations.
Joseph’s death adds to a troubling rise in LPG-related incidents across the country this year.
There have been several explosions resulting in multiple injuries and at least three other fatalities.
On October 16, a day before Joseph’s death, Ramco Industries Ltd issued a media release expressing “deep concern” over the growing number of LPG-related incidents.
The company said investigations into individual cases were ongoing, but noted that the leading causes were defective regulators and hoses.
Ramco urged customers to use only approved equipment, replace regulators every five years and inspect hoses regularly for leaks or damage.
On September 27, Ria George, 45, of Digity Trace in Penal died at the San Fernando General Hospital, nearly two months after being injured in a gas tank explosion at her home.
After George’s death, the National Petroleum Marketing Company advised consumers to test new gas tanks for leaks using soapy water and to report any defects immediately.
Earlier this year, Raquel Babwah, 44, of Claxton Bay, and Naomi Aliyah Mya De Mille,19, of Lopinot, also lost their lives after similar incidents.
A 28-year-old man of Sunrees Road, Penal, is in critical condition after his liquid petroleum gas tank exploded on October 13.
The man’s uncle told investigators that around 3.45 pm, he was at home when he heard a loud explosion. Upon checking, he saw his nephew’s downstairs apartment on fire.
The labourer sustained injuries to his face and was taken to the San Fernando General Hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery and was warded in the intensive care unit.
Fire officers of the Mon Repos Fire Station responded and extinguished the blaze, and determined it was caused by the explosion of a 20-pound gas cylinder in the kitchen.
There have been several gas tank explosions this year, with about half a dozen injuries and three fatalities.
On September 27, Ria George died at the San Fernando Hospital after she was injured when her gas tank exploded at her Diggity Trace home almost two months earlier.
Following George’s death, the National Petroleum Marketing Company advised people to inspect newly purchased tanks for leaks with soapy water. It said any defects should be immediately reported.
Raquel Babwah, 44, died days after a suspected gas tank explosion at her Mt Pleasant Road in Springvale Village, Claxton Bay, in June.
Naomi Aliyah Mya De Mille, 19, died at hospital after a similar suspected explosion at her Lopinot home in April.
A 47-day-old baby was pronounced dead at the Chaguanas Health Facility on the evening of October 7.
Newsday was told that police responded to a report of a sudden death at the facility around 5 pm and found the body of the baby boy lying on a bed with bruises about its body. An autopsy was ordered and the body was taken to a funeral home for safekeeping.
Earlier that day, a 20-month-old girl was found dead at her Lowkey Trace, Penal home.
The child’s 60-year-old grandmother said her 31-year-old daughter left her three children in her (the grandmother) care over the weekend. However, around 5 pm on October 6, the 20-month-old girl got a slight fever.
The elderly woman told investigators she attempted to feed her granddaughter a four-ounce baby formula around 11.30 pm, but she spat it out and refused to drink.
She said her granddaughter fell asleep shortly after, so she placed the baby on its stomach on the mattress in the living room and retired to bed. She said she woke up around 3 am to check on her grandchildren when she found the girl unresponsive.
Emergency health personnel were unable to resuscitate her. She was pronounced dead by a district medical officer, and an autopsy was ordered. She was found wearing a pampers. Police said there were no visible marks of violence on the body. Police are continuing investigations into both incidents.
Parts of Port of Spain, San Fernando and Penal were under water as bad weather battered the nation on September 15.
The TT Meteorological Office (Met Office) had issued an adverse weather (yellow) alert from 11.15 am to 5 pm on September 15 as a result of the heavy rains.
The Met Office said there was a high (80 per cent) chance of heavy showers and thunderstorm activity associated with rainy season conditions, but the bad weather has caused unstable conditions mainly over the island of Trinidad.
“The most impactful weather is expected over, but not confined to, western parts of Trinidad. Gusty winds are possible in the vicinity of heavy downpours.”
The Met Office said possible impacts of the bad weather include Street and/or flash flooding, localized ponding in low-lying areas, landslips and landslides, agitated sea conditions, movement of unsecured items and loose vegetation.
At about 3.30 pm on September 15 the Office of Disaster Preparedness (ODPM) reported that isolated thunderstorms over western Trinidad resulted in flooding in several areas.
In Port of Spain flooding was reported on lower Edward Street, French Street, lower Richmond Street, South Quay near City Gate, parts of Tragerete Road, Wrightson Road, Independence Square and Hamilton-Holder Street.
In San Fernando flooding was reported on Chaconia Avenue in Pleasantville and Independence Avenue.
In Penal, flooding was reported on Dumfries Junction, Palmiste Boulevard, the Southern Main Road in La Romaine and Union Hall.
Minister of Rural Development and Local Government Kadijah Ameen added in a voice note message that in Port of Spain streets such as Arapita Avenue, the Western Main Road in St James, St Vincent Street, Abercromby Street and Frederick Street were also experiencing flooding.
She noted that in San Fernando the Cipero river had burst its banks and in Dibe flooding had left areas impassible.
She advised the public not to drive their vehicles through flood water and to seek alternative routes around the water or wait for the flood water to subside.
Ameen noted that while most areas experienced flash flooding, with water quickly receding, some areas may need additional work.
“Some of it will require collaboration with the ministry of works, for instance the Cipero River because it burst its banks.”
The Met Office discontinued the adverse weather alert at 4.40 pm.
VANDALS have stolen electrical cables belonging to the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) over the weekend, disrupting service in parts of Penal.
The incident happened at Scott’s Road Well #1 overnight on September 6.
A statement from WASA on September 7 said the vandals had removed electrical wires and control equipment components.
WASA said it “strongly condemns” this act of vandalism, which has affected the supply to about 4,000 consumers along Penal Rock Road.
The authority said major electrical repairs are needed to restore the facility and are expected to be completed by 8 pm on September 9.
It said customers in several areas may experience low pressure or no water at times.
These include Boodoo’s Development, along Penal Rock Road from Scott’s Road Junction to Morne Diablo Junction, Scott’s Road proper and Morne Diablo proper.
WASA encouraged the public to report all acts of vandalism or suspicious activities at WASA’s installations to its customer contact centre, toll-free at 800-4420/4426, or to the police.
EIGHT new preventive detention orders issued under the state of emergency (SoE) against alleged gang leaders and members accused of fuelling violent crime, trafficking operations, and orchestrating plots from behind prison walls have been gazetted.
The eight legal notices, issued between August 13 and August 25, were gazetted on September 2, and identify organised criminal groups (OCGs) operating across communities from Arima to Diego Martin, Penal, and Point Fortin.
The notices suggest several detainees were not only active on the streets but also continued to influence gang activity while incarcerated. One alleged faction leader with access to a cache of rifles was accused of working with imprisoned gang leaders to plan public executions of security officials and coordinate kidnappings. Another was said to be an active participant in prison-based criminal networks that smuggled contraband, including narcotics and cellphones, to sustain gang activity on the outside.
The notices describe plots to carry out reprisal shootings and executions in Arima, Diego Martin, and other areas such as Toco. In one case, a detainee was linked to a series of high-profile robberies targeting banks and casinos, planned to take place in crowded public spaces with high-powered weapons. Others were accused of resuming marijuana trafficking and intimidating witnesses to reassert control over their territories.
One detainee was described as the owner of maritime vessels, allegedly used to move narcotics, firearms, ammunition, contraband, human cargo, and even fuel, while acting as a conduit for information between compromised security officials and international criminal partners. Another was accused of using his business as a front for stolen narcotics and of redistributing them locally.
The detention orders pointed to detainees’ access to caches of high-powered firearms and their intent to launch imminent attacks. Planned targets included rival gangs, state officials, and civilian bystanders caught in the crossfire. Minister of Homeland Security Roger Alexander noted that without intervention, these plots would have resulted in a wave of killings, kidnappings, and public violence.
All eight were detained under Regulation 14 of the Emergency Powers Regulations, 2025, which allows the minister to order preventive detention if satisfied that an individual poses a threat to public safety. The orders emphasised that detention was necessary to disrupt imminent criminal activity and prevent escalation of violence.
Since the SoE was declared on July 18, nearly 50 detention orders have been gazetted, with detainees ranging from street-level enforcers to alleged gang bosses and facilitators inside state institutions. A Review Tribunal has been set up to hear challenges to these orders.
A 25-year-old man from Penal has been charged with 17 offences which arose from a robbery in July in the Barrackpore district.
He is scheduled to appear before a High Court Master in San Fernando on September 2.
A media statement on September 2 said the police arrested him on August 31, in connection with the robbery which took place on July 28.
It said the victims, two brothers and their families, were at their separate homes on the same compound in Barrackpore, when six men, five with guns, attacked them.
The victims reported that they were beaten with guns, their homes ransacked, family members assaulted, and three cellphones stolen.
The suspects fled the scene in one of the victim’s black Nissan Pulsar car.
On the instructions from Insp Sookdeo and ASP Morales, acting Cpl Lee Lum charged the suspect with three counts of burglary, three counts of robbery with violence, two counts of larceny motor vehicle, one count of larceny, five counts of false imprisonment, one count of interfering with a motor vehicle, one count of malicious damage to a motor vehicle and one count of kidnapping.
A shop owner from Penal was gunned down in what appeared to be a premeditated attack, after the killer scoped out the scene and returned minutes later to carry out the murder.
Kevin Ryan, 46, of Penal Rock Road, Penal, was inside the business, Big G One Shop, on the night of August 21. According to reports, around 9 pm, Ryan had left his business to buy something to eat in the Penal area.
In his absence, the suspect, wearing an orange coverall and a ski mask, entered the establishment, scanned the area, and left without incident. The suspect is described as being about six feet one inch tall, slim built, and dark in complexion.
Ryan returned around 9.15 pm, and shortly afterward, the suspect re-entered the business with a gun. He fired a shot at Ryan, hitting him in the chest. Ryan managed to run into the kitchen area, at the back of the shop, where he collapsed and died.
The killer then ran west along the Penal Rock Road. No other injuries were reported.
The police were alerted, and among the first responders were officers from the Penal Police Station. Police from the Homicide Bureau of Investigations were also notified and visited the scene.
Investigators were told that Ryan and another person were in the shop when the gunman fired the fatal shot.
A DMO visited the scene and ordered that the body be removed pending an autopsy at the Forensic Science Centre, St James.
No arrests have been made and WPC Murren is leading the investigation.
One man was killed and a woman was injured after the spiritual leaders were attacked in Waterloo on August 14 while on their way to give guidance to someone.
The deceased has been identified as Prakash Bissessar, 40, of Pluck Road, San Francique, Penal. The 33-year-old injured female relative told investigators they were driving to a client while following a WhatsApp live location around 9.30 pm when they were fire upon near Opal Avenue.
Police responded and found Bissessar dead in the driver’s seat while the woman was nursing a wound to her abdomen.
Bissessar was pronounced dead on the scene by a district medical officer, and the body was ordered removed pending an autopsy at the Forensic Science Centre, St James. The woman was taken to the Couva Health Facility before being transferred to the San Fernando General Hospital.
