DAD OF TWO SHOT DEAD

FOUR GUNMEN, one dressed in full police uniform including bullet-proof vest, stormed the Palo Seco home of 28-year-old father of two Nigel Singh, early yesterday morning and abducted him while demanding that he give them the name of another man.

Hours later, Singh’s body, which bore a single gunshot wound to the right leg and wounds at the back of his head, was found by an oil-worker near Oil Well 22, a mile away from Singh’s home. His hands were tied behind his back. The discovery came moments after Erin police unsuccessfully pursued Singh’s killers, exchanging gunfire with them during a high-speed chase along the SS Erin Road, in which an officer was shot in the leg.Police investigating the country’s latest murder have described Singh’s killing as a well-orchestrated, mafia-styled “hit,” with a possible drug link. Up to late yesterday, police were still searching for Singh’s killers. The abduction occurred in the presence of Singh’s six-month pregnant wife and their two children, who watched in horror while Singh was being savagely beaten. The woman and her children were later bound and gagged by the intruders. Singh’s wife, Iris, 29, had to be rushed to San Fernando General Hospital (SFGH) where she remains warded for observation, after she started experiencing contractions.

The drama unfolded around 1 am, when the four gunmen, one of whom wore a bullet proof vest with the words “POLICE” written across it, a navy blue pants and a police beret, kicked down the front door of Singh’s home at Rancho Quemado Branch Road, Erin. Singh, a gauger employed with Lease Operators, who was asleep with his wife and two children Maria, eight, and Nikki, six, was dragged off his bed while his wife and children were bound and gagged with duct tape. Singh was beaten by the men who kept asking, “Where the man is? Yuh know who we talking about.” The killers promised Singh’s wife they would not kill him, if he gave them the information they wanted. The intruders also said they would only make a ransom demand. Singh was then handcuffed, dragged out of the house and bundled into the killers’ white B13 Sentra car, which sped off. Singh’s wife managed to untie herself and quickly telephoned police. Within minutes, Cpl David Subero and PC Denver Marsh, both of Erin Police Station responded to a report and spotted the killers’ car exiting Rancho Quemado Branch Road.

The car stopped some 20 feet from the police vehicle and when the officers alighted and ordered the men to come out of the car, they (the killers) sped off and opened gunfire at the officers. The bullets penetrated the police jeep, striking PC Marsh on his left leg. The officers returned fire and pursued the killers who managed to escape. PC Marsh was rushed to the SFGH where he was treated and remains warded in stable condition. At 7.30 am, an oil-worker on his way to work, stumbled across Singh’s body lying face up on the ground near an oil-well, situated a mile away from Singh’s home. Investigators led by Supt Gopiechand Ganga and including Insp Michael Wells and investigating officer Cpl Minors, visited the scene along with the District Medical Officer (DMO) who ordered Singh’s body removed from the scene. The killers’ getaway car was found around mid-morning abandoned at Oilfield Road, Santa Flora. Police sources said  the car was stolen on Saturday night near KFC in San Fernando. An autopsy done yesterday at the Forensic Science Centre, St James, revealed that Singh bled to death after the bullet to his right leg ruptured a major artery. Meanwhile Singh’s distraught family has denied reports that Singh’s death was drug related. “I don’t know him to be in any drugs or anything like that. He was a young boy... what he will do with drugs? It is in an old house that he living in,” Singh’s sister, Shirley Singh told Newsday. The woman said she remained baffled as to why someone would want to kill her brother, whom she described as a “nice, loving, quiet person.” The woman said she had no idea who Singh’s killers were referring to, when they asked her brother to tell them “Who the man” was and where he was. “This is so scary. We are all very afraid,” she added.