Murder zones in T&T–East-West corridor, South most dangerous
llegal guns are being blamed for one of the bloodiest months in this country's history after the T&T Police Service (TTPS) recorded 53 murders in January. These guns, patterns across the country show, were used in the majority of homicides.
The districts that have reported the highest murder rate in the first month of the New Year include Arima, Sangre Grande, Cunupia, south Trinidad and along the East-West corridor from Arouca to Port-of-Spain.
The Sunday Guardian compiled and analysed the murders committed last month.
There were nine killings in Arima, eight of which were gun-related. Sangre Grande and Cunupia each recorded three people being gunned down. South Trinidad recorded 11 gun-related murders, and from Arouca to Port-of-Spain, along the East-West corridor, 11 people were killed, ten by firearms.
Statistics showed that Tunapuna, Arouca, Malabar, Barataria, St James, El Socorro, San Juan, Wallerfield, Malick, Paramin and Brasso Seco all reported a gun-related murder last month.
Cascade recorded one murder, Maraval recorded one, Paramin recorded one and St Ann's recorded three. According to statistics, of the six murders in those areas, three of the victims died from gunshot wounds, while one man was stabbed.
Heading further east in Wallerfield one person was shot and killed, while Couva, Chaguanas, Wallerfield, Brasso Seco and Malabar each recorded one murder.
Two people lost their lives in Tobago. One of the victims had his throat slit while the body of a male was discovered.
In January, TTPS recorded 53 killings compared to 60 in 2018, which was the highest ever reported in the last six years. The January 2022 figure represented 28 more murders when compared to January 2021.
Criminologist Daurius Figueira is predicting the momentum of killings and crimes from the third quarter of last year will roll into the first quarter of 2022, and relatively calm communities such as Sangre Grande, Arima, Chaguanas and South would see a spike in gang violence due to a shift in the drug trade.
While the killing spree and bloodshed dominated at least four localities creating fear, worry and further panic among the population, acting Police Commissioner Mc Donald Jacob at a TTPS weekly press briefing in mid-January assured the nation that murders were not out of control, while Assistant Commissioner of Police Wendell Williams urged citizens not to be alarmed by the surge in killings as it happens from time to time.
But as January ended the mayhem and murders continued as gunmen held their reign of terror into the start of February.
A breakdown of the statistics showed that 45 victims were gunned down, the others were either stabbed, beaten or dumped in an isolated area.
The victims, most of whom are males, ranged in ages ten to 72. Only three were females.
Two areas that continue to earn the reputation as killings fields are Arima and south Trinidad.
In these two districts, the police had to respond to 20 killings in under 30 days.
The body of Keithisha Cudjoe was discovered last Friday in the Height of Aripo after she went missing on January 24, which brought the murder count to nine in this eastern district.
One of the deaths in Arima included ten-year-old Christian Liverpool of Bernard Street. The police found and seized a Smith and Wesson pistol at the crime scene. A male relative was later detained and then released as the DPP ordered an inquest into the boy's death.
Areas in the South such as San Fernando, Gasparillo, Mayaro, Tabaquite, Marabella, Erin and Fyzabad also dominated the headlines with 11 people being shot and killed.
In San Fernando alone, there were two double murders just one week apart.
Two of the men–Akeem Mendoza and Jasher Daniel–were gunned down close to their Orchid Gardens, Pleasantville homes. The other two, Malik Straker and Joel Chambers were sprayed with bullets while seated in a vehicle in the South Park Mall car park.
The country recorded its first triple murder on January 13 when armed men opened fire on Jhermac Quashie, Terrance Nixon and Skeete Sanchez while they sat inside a car parked on the Toco Main Road in Sangre Grande. The killings rocked the peaceful community.
Pensioner Elza Sandy, 67, was robbed and beaten to death at her Tacarigua home hours after the country rang in the New Year.
Hours into the New Year, as well, the nation was also thrown into a state of shock with the news of Sharlene Lawrence, 27 and her father-in-law Roy Mahabir, 72, being gunned down inside their Cunupia home by men pretending to be police officers.
Surprisingly, the violence and murders that are frequently reported in and around Port-of-Spain among rival gangs saw a decrease in killings.
In the capital city, only two men succumbed to gunshot wounds–Kerwin Naswell lost his life after a gunman with a high-powered rifle opened fire on him in Laventille.
Outside of the fatal shootings, there were reports of two men dying of stab wounds in Chaguanas and Laventille, while someone stumbled upon Yanic Shaquille's body which was wrapped in a garbage bag in a river in St Ann's.
The pattern showed that most victims were shot inside a parked vehicle or riddled with bullets inside their home, liming with friends or walking along a street.
February also got off to a murderous start with Marvin Cross and Worlene Joseph being pumped with bullets at a home in Fyzabad.
In the hours that followed, two people were shot and killed in San Fernando–Salisha Mohammed and Bobby Sohan in a wheelchair. A third person, Tong Chin was gunned down inside his car in Chaguanas in broad daylight.
'Gang violence escalating'
Jacob noted that statistically, the month of January tended to be higher in terms of killings in the country.
He told reporters last month that 60 per cent of the country's murders were linked to gang warfare, with altercations and domestic violence accounting for another 30 per cent.
Responding to the brazen killings in the busy car park of a shopping mall in South, Jacob said on the surface the murders appeared to be gang/drug-related.
He said there seems to be a worrying trend of gang violence escalating following what he described as a significant merger last year between the street gangs and several white-collar enterprise gangs.
Jacob said the focus on getting illegal guns off the streets will see legal ports being watched. The operations of security firms will come under scrutiny as well as licenced gun dealers, legal firearm users, shooting ranges and firearm trainers.
Admitting there are too many guns in T&T, Jacob pointed out there are gaps in the legal system that need to be tightened up.
Hinds satisfied with Jacob's crime plan
Last Sunday, National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds told reporters that he met with Jacob to find out how the TTPS plans to deal with "an apparent burgeoning crime situation."
Though the crime trend was nothing new, Hinds admitted that we have been seeing regular killings in recent times.
Hinds said he asked Jacob for a crime plan which he shared with him and the National Security Council. He was satisfied with what he heard.
Asked whether the spike in homicides could be attributed to gang violence, Hinds said not all were gang-related, stating that he had information to suggest that domestic violence accounted for a tremendous number of murders.
Other murders, Hinds said, arise out of petty squabbles.
"I'm acutely aware and satisfied that the anti-gang law which is at the disposal of the police is being affected," Hinds said.
He also stated that in recent times we have had a plethora of legal weapons coming in.
"That too, based on all we have heard and seen, is generating another kind of concern and possibly another kind of problem," Hind said.
Deosaran slams Govt's Anti-Gang legislation
But two days later, criminologist Ramesh Deosaran said with 50-plus murders in one month T&T was heading "into a mafia country."
Deosaran also slammed the Government's Anti-Gang legislation which is doing nothing to help the situation.
He said Government has to now step back and take a fresh look at these gang-related behaviours and the sudden increases in serious crimes rather than just talk and show statistics.
Deosaran suggested that the TTPS do some demographic analysis on those committing crimes, stating that their background needed to be checked "because there are a lot of foreigners in the country, not only Venezuela. People are forming gangs with their own here and regenerating with locals here."
Research in 2019 by the Strategic Services Agency revealed over 8,154 illegals guns have been circulating in T&T.
Police seized 680 illegal guns and over 12,000 rounds of assorted ammunition last year.
A total of 976 people were charged with possession of illegal guns and related offences in 2021.
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