Beetham residents protest over shooting

Police moved quickly yesterday to quell protests by residents of Beetham Estate after they attempted to block a portion of the Beetham Highway, then the Priority Bus Route in the vicinity of Pashley Street, Laventille. The residents took to the streets after Randy Williams, 25, a father of three, of Phase Five, Beetham Estate, was shot during an encounter with the police outside the Beetham Landfill. Williams remains warded at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital.

Police said Williams was at the landfill when he allegedly confronted an officer who had charged him with using obscene language and resisting arrest last December. They claimed Williams threw stones at the officer, who fired a warning shot in the air. When he did not stop, the officer shot him in the foot.

Residents who saw Williams being taken away to hospital protested but were subdued by the police. Around midday, the residents attempted to move their protest to the highway but were blocked by officers of the Inter Agency Task Force, Guard and Emergency Branch, Transit police officers and members of the Defence Force. They were also stopped from protesting on the Priority Bus Route. One angry resident shouted: “Them only shooting people on the Beetham like we is criminal. They suppose to see a gun before they shoot.”

Investigations into the incident are continuing.