Two gunned down at car wash

According to a police report at about 12.30 am, Bhawani and Joseph were inside the car wash when the incident occurred. Reports said the two men were at the time washing a customer’s vehicle when a vehicle pulled up in front the compound and its occupant(s) began shooting at the men.

The killers then sped off. Bhawani and Joseph died on the spot after being shot in their chest, abdomen and face. A District Medical Officer (DMO) visited the scene and pronounced Bhawani and Joseph dead and ordered the bodies to be removed to the Forensic Science Centre, St James. The area was cordoned off by police. Crime Scene Investigators spent several hours inside the premises of the car wash recovering spent shells to be taken for further testing. Bhawani resided on the compound where his business place was located.

Sources told Newsday the gunmen were targetting Joseph while Bhawani was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Newsday learnt Joseph recently had an altercation with a man who threatened to kill him. Newsday was told the man was looking for Joseph. Speaking with Newsday at the crime scene, Joseph’s aunt Margaret Simon-Mann said her nephew was not involved in any illegal activities.

“He does just hustle and work hard. He does mason work with his father and he recently started working here at this car wash,” she said. Simon-Mann said she believes someone may have approached her nephew to get involved in some type of illegal activities and he may have declined.

“He does not be on that , so I think that is what happened, because I can’t see anything else why they would have just killed him just like that,” she told Newsday.

The emotional woman said she was still in a state of shock. “It is real dred what is happening in this place,” she said.

Also, among onlookers at the crime scene was one of Bhawani’s close friends, Anthony Noriega.

Holding back his tears, he said Bhawani was an ambitious man who did not deserve such a death.

He said Bhawani was also a stuntman.

Noriega said that Bhawani had recently opened the car wash business “Aqua Splash Car Wash” near his home but never stopped performing his stunts on his bike at events.

“He loved putting a smile on the faces of people and he did so by doing his bike stunts all over the country. He was really talented and good at what he did,” Noriega said. Bhawani was also the father of a two-year-old daughter. Bhawani , he said started performing bike stunts at the age of seven years. He described Bhawani as a kind individual.

Up to late yesterday police were viewing footage captured from nearby closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras. Police of the Homicide Region Three Division are investigating.