Crime
Young Men Pushing Crime Wave in Turks & Caicos
By Dana Malcolm
Staff Writer
#TurksandCaicos, June 15, 2022 – In the period of seven days four young men below the age of 25 have been charged with firearm offenses, including wounding. The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force released the information on Tuesday, June 7th, regarding several incidents involving separate persons.
Twenty-four-year-old Lavardo Campbell is the oldest of the bunch, and was charged alongside 21-year-old Jean-Max
Patrick Frantz Gedeus was charged with keeping a firearm and ammunition on June 6th after suspicious activity surrounding his SUV was noticed by the police a day earlier. The officers towed the SUV and searched it in his presence, finding a black pistol, loaded with a magazine containing two 9mm rounds.
The youngest of the group of men charged, Alex Aquino is 19 years old and was also charged on June 3rd for discharging a firearm and carrying ammunition after he was identified as the shooter in an incident where a man was threatened, and rounds were discharged in the Five Cays area.
The minimum sentence for gun possession in the Turks and Caicos remains 5 years imprisonment. The consistent arrests of college-age young men in the Turks and Caicos underscores the importance of accessible tertiary education for students as well as programs in lockup to prevent recidivism.
The TCIG has implemented several programs for intervention and education after lockup but preventative programs including teen mentorship and educational opportunities may help to stem the number of young men and women heading to lockup in the first place.