A thorough investigation is being done into the murders of three men, including a Jamaican national, Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of crime Glen Hackett said yesterday. In a telephone interview with the T&T Guardian yesterday, Hackett said the matter was being investigated with alacrity and the police were exploring all factors in the case.
Hackett was responding to criticism of the police investigation by Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley who toured Desperlie Crescent, Laventille, on Monday where the trio—Dillon “Bandy” Skeete, 30, Joel Tash, 22, and Jamaican Tremaine Thomas, 25—were killed. Rowley thought the police were not handling the matter properly. “This matter warrants a very thorough investigation, not only of the killings but of what happened after,” he said.
He added Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, National Security Minister Gary Griffith and acting Commissioner of Police Stephen Williams must be made aware that “something very terrible has happened in Laventille and it requires a very thorough, conclusive investigation. “If we never determine what happened here, we are far worst off than we were last Thursday morning,” Rowley noted.
He said regardless of who was killed the crime scene should have been secured to allow for a proper investigation, adding it was “unsatisfactory” that officers of state had not “taken control of the scene” immediately after the killings occurred. Asked about the claim by Rowley of the mishandling of the crime scene, Hackett said he would not comment on that.
However, he did respond to claims by residents the killers were members of the protective services, saying that from their investigation so far there was no iota of truth to that. Also responding to Rowley’s claim was National Security Minister Gary Griffith, who during a telephone interview, said he would look into claims that the crime scene was contaminated as residents collected bullet casings and showed them to Rowley, who told them to hand it over to police.
He added: “I have heard the concerns saying that there has been no sense of visual interest towards trying to deal with the matter of the shooting. “This is where people have actually claimed to have acquired the rounds because the police did not investigate the site of the incident. “What I can say is that as the Minister of National Security, regardless of who is killed, all homicides should be dealt with in a very professional manner and as quickly as possible.
“It should be done utilising all resources to ensure that the individuals who have been involved in the crime are brought to justice. “I would expect that would be the procedure regardless of who is the victim. “Whether or not the police had processed the crime scene properly, I cannot turn a blind eye and accept what was being said by both sides,” he added.
With reporting by Kevon Felmine
How it happened
Around 10 pm on September 24, five masked gunmen came out of a black Nissan X-Trail and ordered Thomas, reputed gang leader Skeete, Tash, Atiba Lewis, Christian Huggins, 24, and four others to kneel. One of the masked men, it was alleged, made a phone call and after hanging up began shooting at Skeete before the other men opened fire on the kneeling men. Huggins and Lewis were shot multiple times and are warded at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital while the others escaped unhurt.
Police say they have no motive for the shooting but residents say the masked gunmen were soldiers who came to kill Skeete, who was named as a suspect in the murder of Lance Corporal Kayode Thomas. Thomas was shot dead while on his way to his home at Beverly Hills, Laventille, on June 29.
