Neighbours: Suicide cop, wife, had history of violence

Neighbours of suicide victim, policeman Raffick Mohammed believe that the tragedy was destiny. Mohammed’s common-law wife is still in critical condition at hospital following Friday night’s suicide and attempted murder outside the St Joseph Police Station. One resident of Azalea Circular, Duranta Gardens, Sangre Grande, where Cpl Raffick Mohammed lived with his common-law wife Kamla Paltoo said: “While it is unfortunate that the outcome was death and shooting, from the violence and confrontations that took place between that couple for the eight years they have been living here, something had to break, something like this was destined to happen, it was destiny.

“The two were always walking the road and fighting, he accusing her of being unfaithful, then running to the station making reports, then throwing them out. Their fighting and his allegations were legendary. “On many occasions she left home for days, weeks, sometimes months. And he would always go and beg her to come back, then the accusations and threats would start all over again. “So bad had it become that he placed the children at a sister’s home because he was always at work, she was always out having a good time and when they were together it was always fighting.

“On more than one occasion he threatened to kill her and kill himself. We were always able to talk him out of it but this time he did not talk to us and we had no knowledge he was going to do this,” the resident said. Mohammed, 43, a Traffic Officer with over 22 years service according to reports, was seen and heard arguing on Friday night outside the St Joseph Police Station with his common-law wife about her request for him to leave the family home. The policeman, who was described as quiet and unassuming by his colleagues, left the woman at the gate and told her he was coming back.

Mohammed, who appeared to be intoxicated at the time, claimed he had a search warrant to execute and  requested a gun to go on duty from Cpl Maraj, the sentry on duty, who refused him. Cpl Mohammed was off duty at the time. Cpl Maraj left the charge room and Mohammed then ordered his junior to hand him a gun with four rounds of ammunition. He then returned to the east side of the road where the argument continued. One shot then rang out hitting Kamla, 38, in her hand. as witnesses turned to watch they saw him firing another shot which missed its mark, then another which struck his children’s mother in her lower back as she attempted to run into the station for safety. And then in horror they watched Mohammed place the gun to his left temple and pull the trigger. Officers at the station less than 40 yards away took the two bleeding people to the nearby Eric Williams Medical Complex in a police vehicle where Mohammed died on arrival.

There are two children of the couple. Senior officers at the Sangre Grande police station confirmed the couple had a history of domestic violence and made reports of threats and beatings, but they always returned to withdraw them. No one was at the family home when Sunday Newsday visited yesterday. Shocked colleagues at the St Joseph police station, where the deceased cop worked, described Cpl Mohammed as quiet and unassertive. They told Sunday Newsday that over the years he had become very depressed about the situation at home but did not say much. There have been occasions when he would come to work  crying, saying he was fed up and could take it no more.

“He would cry that his wife was having an affair and she would not stop. We spoke to him but he never let out that he intended to kill her or himself. Because of the situation he became an alcoholic and often buried his depression in drinking.” Visiting the scene were vacationing CoP Everald Snaggs, ACP Oswyn Allard, Snr Supt Ruthven Bastien, Inspectors Johnny Abraham and Michael Modeste, along with Sgt Michael Daniel and Deram Ramchoon and constable Nirmal Ramjattan. Sgt Ramchoon is continuing enquiries.