Christopher Greaves was buried at the Tunapuna public cemetery yesterday but his fiancee, Khannah Thomas, hopes his story and the Beetham community’s call for justice were not buried with him. He was shot and killed by police on Sunday while returning from a shop two streets from his home. Police said Greaves was shot after he opened fire on officers on Third Street, Beetham Gardens, on Sunday afternoon.
However, residents said he was not armed. They said the shooting was unwarranted and was an incident of police brutality. Residents protested on Sunday and Monday on the Priority Bus Route and Beetham Highway. They discontinued protests after receiving assurances the matter would be investigated by Police Complaints Authority director Gillian Lucky.
Thomas held their one-year-old son, Isaiah, for most of the funeral service, crying intermittently as Greaves’ aunt read the eulogy which painted him as a young man in search of a better life. Commenting on Greaves’ life after the eulogy, she told the packed Bible Way Apostolic Church, Morvant, she felt lost since his death. Thomas broke down in tears before saying the pain of losing her fiance was too much to bear.
With tears streaming down her cheeks, Thomas said her greatest wish was that the family would get justice. “They will try to cover it up but what can I do?” Thomas asked. “I will get justice.” Greaves’ mother Annette said Wednesday was the first night she walked into her son’s room and started crying. Yesterday she cried as she looked at his casket and with loud sobs said: “Christopher, I want to see you. I want to hear your voice. May your soul rest in peace.”