Gunshots reported in Kew Town hours after Police broke down Barricades

Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer 

#TurksandCaicos, September 15, 2023 – Violent activity was again reported in Providenciales, coming out of Kew Town.  This time, the report was of shots fired with residents reaching out to our news team on September 12th around 9 pm.

Police were contacted but did not confirm whether they were also activated by reports of gunfire.

A wave of killings, many associated with criminal activity and some even pegged as retaliatory, have affected the country in the last three months.  This has resulted in the drawdown of assets from neighboring countries including aerial support from Cayman and additional manpower from The Bahamas.

National security internally and at the borders, was a significant point of discussion between the Turks and Caicos delegation and the United Kingdom (which oversees the response to security threats locally) at the Joint Ministerial Council in May.

The UK has since responded with cash to fund aerial support and extend their officer’s time on the ground. That has not managed to stifle the criminal underbelly completely.

Later in the week, Police would report that the third installment of Operation Reclaim netted a significant suspect, a mass of marijuana and illegal firearms.