Car thief shot dead in Cocorite

Handyman Jamal Maynard reportedly stole a car from a woman at gunpoint in Arouca last Wednesday.

On Sunday, officers of the St James Police Station, who were on mobile patrol, received information from Crime Stoppers that the stolen car was being kept at Powder Magazine.

At 7.45 pm on Sunday, officers conducted a surveillance exercise at Powder Magazine, and saw two men about to enter the stolen vehicle.

Officers called on the driver to bring the car to a stop, but he refused. The police claimed that the occupants shot at them, and they returned fire. The driver of the car attempted to flee the scene and crashed into a parked van. Police officers found Maynard’s body slumped over in the car.

His accomplice escaped on foot.

Maynard was rushed to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

Police officers described Maynard as a car thief and a bandit, but this was disputed by his relatives and residents of Powder Magazine. They said that he was not a bandit, but was murdered by the police.

One eyewitness said the police ambushed the two men while they were seated in the car.

The eyewitness also said the police could have handled the matter differently.

An autopsy on the body will be carried out today.

The police car, which was damaged in the alleged shootout, was towed to the St James Police Station.

A party of officers led by Snr Supt Roderick Roach visited the scene and investigations are continuing.