Bandits kill patron in South bar
ONE man was shot dead and two others grazed by bullets, while seven others were pistol-whipped during a robbery at a restaurant and bar in San Fernando on Monday night. He became murder victim number 298. Contractor Gerard Bocus, 60, of Cragnish Village, Princes Town, was shot three times when he retaliated against the four gunmen. Two prison officers, Nigel Cowen of Gerbera Lane, Pleasantville, and Brian Andrew Davis of Betsy Street, La Romaine, escaped death when bullets whizzed passed their heads. The murder/robbery occurred at 10 pm at Cover Girls Restaurant and Bar on Carib Street, San Fernando. According to a police report, four gunmen barged into the bar and announced a hold-up while Bocus and other patrons were seated around a table. When the gunmen entered, they ordered the patrons to lie on the floor. The restaurant’s proprietor, Narine Nanansingh, was standing behind the counter, but police said he managed to ease himself into a room unnoticed. According to the police report, the bandits, brandishing guns, emptied patrons’ pockets. The gunmen confronted Bocus and attempted to take his two gold rings and gold identification band, but Bocus reportedly stood up and began struggling with one of the gunmen. During the struggle, Bocus was shot in the head. Police said yesterday that the bullet exited through the mouth. Bocus was also shot twice in the chest, police said. When he slumped to the ground, the gunmen fired several wild shots, but the violence did not stop there. According to the police report, the gunmen began beating other patrons with gun butts and kicking them. They eventually escaped in a car, taking patrons’ wallets and cellular phones with them. As Bocus lay dead on the floor in a pool of blood, other patrons who had been grazed by bullets were assisted, and taken to hospital. Nanansingh said he called the E-999 on his cellular phone and told them a robbery was in progress at his business place. "But instead of coming right away the man (officer) asking me all kind of silly questions. While I was on the phone with the police, I heard four gunshots and then three more. I am sure they heard it," the proprietor told Newsday. Bocus was a father of five and grandfather of three. Visiting the crime scene after the incident were officers from the San Fernando CID, Homicide Bureau and Marabella-base E-999 officers. Sgt Charles is investigating. Man shot dead in Cascade According to police reports, Clifford Faxen, alias Fax, was hired from a Port-of-Spain taxi stand by two men who wanted to be taken to Cascade Valley Road at 9.15 pm. When the vehicle arrived at lightpole number 113, the men pointed a gun at Faxen and attempted to rob him. An altercation ensued and Faxen was shot by the bandits. Faxen, 59, crashed the car into a fence, but eventually succumbed to his injuries. The bandits then fled the scene on foot. Area residents heard the crash and called police. The residents told Newsday they were shocked to hear that Faxen had been killed. Faxen had driven up the road, hailing some friends just before the incident. He had only recently come back to Trinidad on vacation after spending some time in England. He returned to sell his car and other household items. Faxen was born in St Vincent and the Grenadines and raised in Trinidad and Tobago from age 14. Faxen’s body was taken to the Forensic Science Centre. Sgt Thomas of the Belmont police is continuing investigations.
Murder victim number 299 this year is a Cascade man who was shot dead by bandits on Monday night while plying his car for hire at Cascade Village.
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"Bandits kill patron in South bar"