MAN SHOT DEAD ON LARA PROMENADE

A BLOODY midday drama on the Brian Lara Promenade yesterday between rival gangs ended in one man being shot dead and an innocent bystander,  being shot and wounded in the leg. Dead is Oba Jones, 24, of Laventille who reports indicate had been pursued into Port-of-Spain by a gang of men. Jones had gone into a bank to cash a cheque, and on leaving the bank was set upon by the gang who chased him onto the grassy area of the promenade where they shot him. When Jones fell, eyewitnesses stated that the men stood over him and fired more shots as though trying to ensure he was dead. An unsubstantiated report said the gun belonged to Jones and had been taken from him by one of the gang members.

Within seconds of the shooting, police patrolling the Promenade were on the scene and arrested at least six members of the gang. One of the men was pursued as far as City Gate and picked up. Just before the shooting began, the gang members were seen at City Gate and later lined up against a wall on the Promenade, opposite the scene of the shooting. People were going about their normal business in the city, including Licensing employee, Lystra Wright, 21, of St Joseph, was shot moments after she left a nearby bank while others in the area scampered for safety. However, some of the more curious rushed to the scene. Workers from banks and other business places surrounding the shooting were reportedly in a state of shock and are due to receive counselling today. Some were so shaken they were immediately sent home.

A few hours later another murder took place at the Tokyo Panyard where a URP employee Aaron Brown was gunned down. Brown was a neighbour of Jones’ father, Ricardo Mc Carthy, who was still in a state of shock over the death of his son. He was accompanied by his two-year-old daughter Abidah Mc Carthy who was just released from hospital where she was warded and treated for gunshot wounds to the chest. Speaking to Newsday, Mc Carthy said his son was murdered in cold-blood and opined that it seemed attempts were being made to wipe out his family. “My daughter was shot last month and now my son has been killed. I feel my life is in danger and I want the authorities to put a stop to these senseless killings,” Mc Carthy said.

While police began their investigations, yesterday there were many conflicting reports about what occurred. One report said that two officers from the Special Anti-Crime Unit were on foot patrol near the promenade when they were alerted by the sounds of gunshots. On investigating, they  saw a man throw a gun towards another who caught the weapon and darted off. The officers   gave chase and apprehended the gun-toting man a short distance away. By the time the shooting was over, scores of persons gathered at the scene where a badly bleeding Jones lay. He was taken in an ambulance to Port-of-Spain General Hospital where doctors pronounced him dead on arrival.

The areas along the promenade where Wright and Jones were shot, were cordoned off with police tape and armed officers kept the curious crowd at bay while investigators scoured the scene searching for clues. Several persons who saw the shooting were being questioned by officers nearby. Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Oswyn Allard who was on the scene said he did not wish to comment too much on the incident until he “had all the facts.” Allard confirmed that six persons were held shortly after the shooting and were being questioned in connection with the incident. A firearm was also recovered.

Yesterday’s murder on the Brian Lara Promenade was the third such incident to occur within the capital this year. On January 17, URP labourer Junior Maule was stabbed to death by two men who attacked him shortly after he (Maule) collected his URP cheque in Port-of-Spain. The other occurred on March 28, when Godfrey “Rattles” Henry was shot dead on Frederick Street as he left the Maximum Security Prison.   Detective Sgt Harvey Jawahir of Port-of-Spain CID is continuing investigations. Jones’ death was the 102nd for the year, while the murder in John John, Laventille where his father was, is the 103rd.

Wrong place at the wrong time

Lystra Wright loves her mother’s cooking so she brings lunch each day from home to work at the Licensing Office in Port- of-Spain. However, yesterday she said she did not like what her mom had cooked. She decided to go out with a friend for lunch in downtown Port-of- Spain. She had just walked out of Republic Bank on Independence Square, heading for lunch across the Brian Lara Promenade. Suddenly she was caught in the crossfire of a lunchtime shootout. “I felt something burning me on my foot,” she declared after learning she had been shot on her left leg.  The bullet went right through her leg. Wright explained, “it was simply a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

The smiling 21-year-old, who sipped on orange juice while at the city hospital related how she became involved in the major shootout. “But after that” she declared “I can’t remember much; I’m not sure how I ended up here at hospital,” she added. Wright said she was disappointed she did not get to have her lunch.  Although she said she was hungry Wright said she did not have much of an appetite. “Right now, I’m happy to be alive. I just want to go home. My mother’s food is better than any outside food now,” she declared. Wright was discharged from hospital late yesterdy after being seen by doctors.