Police believe gang turf war is behind the killing of Carenage resident 35-year-old Marcus Haynes.
Haynes was liming with a group of men at about 8.40 pm on Thursday when gunmen opened fire on them.
Haynes was shot several times, including the chest, arms and legs. He was taken to the St James Infirmary where he died while undergoing medical treatment. Police said it is believed that the gang war between two rival gangs in the area—the Muslims and Rasta City has resurged.
Several residents in the area have expressed frustration over the shootings and have called for a heightened police presence.
A resident of the area, whose grandson was also murdered in the ongoing turf war, said the police sometimes do not even take their calls.
“When we hear gunshots or see people with guns in their hands and we trying to call the police station is either the phones ringing off the hook or busy tone. When you do get through, the police will take the address but then that’s it...you looking out for them and they not even driving past.”
“When they do see police driving through the streets is either they in the area to check somebody out, drop somebody off or they driving so fast in and out, not stopping to search nobody on the streets or even stopping to talk to the old people like me to find out how we fare in this place that has gotten so, so terrible. It not safe for we to walk the streets again,” the 75-year-old man said.
Councillor for Carenage Akeila Glasgow admitted that she was in no position to “determine which crimes are gang-related,” but noted that criminal activity has been “sporadic.”
“The Carenage area is a microcosm of what is happening in wider T&T and, as you know, residents are concerned as crime is the number 1 concern in the country,” she said.
Glasgow said she was currently engaged in a community initiative in collaboration with the police and the regional corporation, called the National Crime Prevention Programme, which has been established to tackle community issues.
“So the line of communication between my office and that of the police is open,” Glasgow said.
Haynes is the 12th person to be murdered this year.