Gunman opens fire on parang lime

A parang lime at St Paul Street in the vicinity of Rodney Street, Besson Street, a short distance away from the Besson Street Police Station, almost turned deadly on Friday night when a lone gunman opened fire on unsuspecting members of the public. Three persons including a 60-year-old man suffered gunshot injuries and were rushed to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital where they were treated and warded. Reports revealed that around 7.45 pm,  David Smith, 38, a contractor and his common-law wife Mildred Jack, of John John, were listening to the parang music when the gunman began firing in all directions.

Smith was shot several times in the stomach. Stephen Brown, 18, was shot in the right hand and right thigh while Ronald Timothy, a 60-year-old community activist from Old St Joseph Road, Laventille, who was walking along Rodney Street suffered gunshot wounds to the right leg. The three injured persons were rushed to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital where they were treated and warded. Officers from the nearby Besson Street Police Station who went to the scene carried out a search for the gunman to no avail.

Eyewitnesses to the shooting told police investigators that the gunman had spotted a member of a rival gang liming with the group listening to parang when he began firing into the crowd. “The man just lost it and did not care if children were in the crowd, he just did not care,” said one eyewitness. When Sunday Newsday visited the scene of the shooting no one was willing to be interviewed on the matter. They expressed fear that their lives could be in danger if they revealed anything about the shootings. Officers of the Inter Agency Task Force and other officers assisted in the search for the gunman.  Cpl Carmichael of the Besson Street Police Station is investigating.