News
Unacceptable Crime, TCI already with FOUR Murders for 2022
By Deandrea Hamilton
Editor
#TurksandCaicos, March 17, 2022 – Four people have been killed in not quite three months of 2022 in the Turks and Caicos Islands, and if this figure were measured to larger nations on a per capita basis, the figure would be appalling.
There are just too many crimes being committed and too of our people being lost and while everyone knows it, speaks out against it, the heinous nature of violence is escalating, not dissipating.
‘An unacceptable level of crime’, is how the Commissioner of Police, Trevor Botting started a three page recount of the crimes committed in Provo over the past five days.
“This level of violence, perpetrated by young men has left a trail of tragedy across these beautiful islands that is unacceptable in any civilized society.”
There were not two, (as we had previously reported) but four armed hold ups on Friday night in the span of 90 minutes said the Commissioner.
The first happened in Grace Bay where 4 armed men stole from two victims, that was at 8:14pm… then three armed men robbed a family in Glass Shack, that happened at 8:42pm… by 8:43pm there was the armed robbery of Sunny Foods, where a cashier was robbed and the fourth offence was on Venetian Road, at 9:46pm where three people were robbed.
Shots were fired only at the Sunny Foods crime, no one was injured in any of the incidents and all were in the earlier part of the evening.
Already, Police had a big job to do in investigating this maddening spree, but the coming days would be worse.
Two young men were shot on Sunday, informed the Commissioner. He said the motive was revenge or retribution between groups of young men.
“Such incidents seem to be motivated by revenge or retribution between groups of young men or even within criminal groups often, over minor disputes. Such acts are ruining young lives on the TCI and have no place in our society. These young men have to find another way to live their lives rather than through violence and guns. I am appealing to them directly to stop the cycle of violence, a cycle that makes you more likely to die a violent death, a
It was a 48 year old man who was attacked around 8am Saturday at the Providenciales Landfill, off Millennium Highway. The worker was shot and robbed of cash at a place where the island’s garbage is dropped off. The man, who remains unidentified by authorities had emergency surgery, sadly on Monday, that man passed away.
“Police attended to find that a 48-year-old man had been shot during a robbery where he had cash stolen from him. The man was taken to hospital where he had emergency surgery. Unfortunately, despite the efforts of the medical team the man succumbed to his injuries on Monday 14th March.”
By 6pm that same day – Saturday March 12 – there was another shooting. The man in this case was dead at the scene. The Commissioner said the man killed in this homicide was a suspect in very serious crimes and that his shooting was a targeted attack.
Again, retribution is cited as the likely motive.
By Tuesday morning, Turks and Caicos had recorded two new murders. By Tuesday night, there were at three people killed in three days.
“The third murder was just last evening. Just after 9pm a man was shot during what was believed to be a robbery in the area known as the Well, just off South Dock Road. The murder last evening was as senseless and barbaric an act as you can imagine; a man who posed no threat to the armed criminals who were seeking to rob and terrorize him shot him for no reason whatsoever, a cold hearted and hideous act of violence.”
The Police Commissioner confirmed that the killing of a beloved IT professional, once at the TCI Community College and then at InterHealth Canada was outrageous.
Four murders so far for 2022 and everyone would agree with his characterisation, that this is a ‘terrible start to the year.’
“My officers are working tirelessly to investigate these crimes and other officers are undertaking operations, some overt and some covert to identify the offenders,” Botting insisted.
Condolences were offered to the families and appeals were given to the general public for at least three things: information you may have in any of these criminal events; intervention by loved ones and relatives, particularly for young men who may be headed down this doomed path and participation in the gun amnesty.
If you have an unregistered firearm, turn it in. There is a cash reward for doing the right thing and there are still 14 days left; the Gun Amnesty of the Royal TCI Police & the PNP Administration ends March 31, 2022.
So far, there have been no weapons handed over.