Gang truce ends with teen’s murder

At around 11.20 pm on Friday, Hypolite, 15, was sitting in the driver’s seat of a car parked in the yard of his Roble Street, Morvant, home. Sitting in the passenger seat was his friend Cyland Wilson, while Andrew “Bakes” Franco, 22, of Cajuca Street and Kevin “Congo” Simon, 20, were sitting on a step nearby. Eyewitnesses said a group of men drove up in a car. One of them jumped out of the vehicle, fired several shots in the direction of Hypolite and his friends and then fled the scene.

Franco and Simon suffered gunshot wounds to their hands and legs and are warded at hospital, while Hypolite, who was shot twice in his chest and once in the leg, died on the way to hospital. Wilson escaped unhurt.

Hypolite’s sister, Fahirah Thomas, who was at home when the shooting occurred, told Sunday Newsday, “I was at home taking care of my sister’s child when I heard the gunshots. Thinking it was the house being shot up, I dived to the ground taking the child with me. My boyfriend also dived to the ground, crawled to the other room and pulled his two children and my other brother to the ground.”

Thomas said a short while later, Wilson came to the side of the house crying that ‘BJ’ had “collected some shots.” She said she ran outside and saw her brother slumped over the steering wheel of the car with bullet wounds to his body.

Thomas denied that her brother was involved in gang activity. Hypolite had been a student of Mucurapo Junior Secondary but suspended from school after a confrontation with a teacher last year. He had been placed in an ‘‘anger management class’’ at the YMCA, Port-of-Spain and had enrolled in a HYPE class which was due to start next month.

Police insisted, however, that Hypolite had been a member of a gang. They said after he was charged for possession of drugs last November, one of the conditions for bail set by a Port-of-Spain magistrate was that Hypolite not visit Roble Street. The teen was due to return to court later this week.

The night before Hypolite’s murder, Smith, who was also a reputed gang member, was shot dead while watching a football game at a basketball court in Chinapoo, Morvant. The dead man was one of the signatories to a peace treaty aimed at ending gang warfare in the area.

Visiting the scene were Cpl Hosten and PCs De Silva and Lynch of the Homicide Bureau (East). Cpl Hosten is continuing inquiries.

In an unrelated matter, police are also investigating the drive-by murder of Gambino gang-member Stephan Edwards.

According to reports, at around 9.30 pm, Edwards, 24, a URP foreman of North Stars Avenue, Malabar, was driving west along the Churchill Roosevelt Highway in the vicinity of Beaulieu Avenue, Trincity, when he stopped at the traffic lights. His girlfriend was in the vehicle with him. As Edwards attempted to drive off another car pulled alongside and a man fired several shots, hitting Edwards twice in the head. He died instantly and his car crashed into a nearby tree.

His girlfriend was taken to the Arima District Hospital where she was treated and discharged.

Relatives of the dead man refused to comment on his murder yesterday. However, neighbours said Edwards was quiet, although suspicious-looking persons regularly visited his home.

An Arima woman is assisting police in their investigation. Visiting the scene were Insp Hilaire, Cpl Hosten, PCs Lynch and De Silva of the Homicide Bureau (East). PCDe Silva is continuing inquiries.