Outpatient shot dead after ‘tripping off’

An outpatient of the St Ann’s Hospital was shot dead by a security guard after running amok in Chaguanas yesterday. According to reports, around 7.15 am, Glen Kelly, of Perseverance Road, Chaguanas, was seen walking in Chase Village with a large piece of wood which he was using to attack pedestrians. Eyewitnesses said Kelly was walking in the middle of the road and when vehicles slowed down to avoid colliding with him, he began to attack them also.

Residents also complained that Kelly was throwing stones into their yards while cursing them and challenging them to intervene. About an hour after his attack began, Kelly hijacked a parked backhoe which he drove into the compound of a hardware store, crashing into the building in the process. He was confronted by a security guard at the store and after a short verbal exchange, got out of the backhoe and attacked the guard with the piece of wood he was carrying.

The security guard drew his service pistol and shot Kelly once in the head. Freeport Police were contacted and they took Kelly to the Chaguanas Health Facility where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Investigators said Kelly was an outpatient of the St Ann’s Psychiatric Hospital and was known to “trip off” on neighbours at times, though he was not known to act violently during his rants.

The security guard was questioned by homicide detectives, who said he had acted in self-defence and his version of the events was corroborated by eyewitnesses. Superintendent Johnny Abraham and Insp Edward Levia are investigating the incident.