SHARE
'Gang war raging from jail'
MORVANT
■ Gyasi Gonzales
gyasi.gonzales@trinidadexpress.com
A GANG war over CEPEP contracts is raging from behind bars.
As two jailed gang leaders continued their fight for control of contracts in the Morvant area, at least ten young men yesterday firebombed the house of the mother of a man who was shot dead in San Juan on Tuesday.
The ambush in San Juan near the Croisee which claimed the life of Reynold Victor, 43, also left one woman in critical condition and two men injured when gunmen opened fire on Victor at Second Street.
Victor was the brother of one of the gang leaders involved in the war for contracts. Police confirmed the ongoing conflict between the two gang leaders currently in jail on murder charges.
Senior police sources said Victor was the brother of a gang leader who is known in the criminal underworld as 'Fox'.
Jelissa Payne, 35, was injured while three other people-Petra Manette, Joel Warner, 40, and Earl Branch, 59-were also injured when gunmen shot Victor on Tuesday morning.
Police sources close to the murder investigation and the firebombing yesterday explained that Victor and his jailed brother were in control of a CEPEP contract.
They said this contract had been sub-contracted out to another gang leader also currently in jail on murder charges who is known in the underworld as 'Fishy'. The Express was told the second gang leader had demanded a greater share of the contract from the first, but he refused.
This led to the murder on Monday of Keston Alves at a clothing store in Aranjuez.
Alves, of Second Caledonia, was said to be a relative of a top gang member. His killing was followed by Tuesday's ambush of victor in San Juan, and the torching of the house in Morvant yesterday.
Police said yesterday's firebombing occurred around 11.30 a.m. at Vegas, Second Caledonia Extension, Morvant.
Police said the mother of Victor was at home when she saw a group of ten men running towards her property-a large peach-coloured concrete structure.
CCTV footage showed at least ten men running towards the house.
One man is seen carrying a plastic beer crate filled with Molotov cocktails, while another is seen standing guard with an assault rifle.
The others grab Molotov cocktails from out of the crate, light them and throw them against the house, setting part of it on fire.
Police said the men tried breaking into the house, but were unable to.
The men are then seen running south along Second Caledonia Extension Road.
Police said Victor's mother and four other relatives were able to escape from the house, and were staying at an unknown location last night.
Fire officers from the Wrightson Road, Port of Spain, headquarters arrived on the scene and were able to bring the blaze under control.
They said half of the house was gutted by fire.
Officers said damage was estimated at $1 million.
The Express visited the area yesterday and saw doors and windows of houses were shut and no one was walking around outside.
Three small parlours in the vicinity of the torched house were also closed.
Spray-painted on several walls in the area were the names of the gangs-ABG (Anybody Gets It) and Sixx.
Even estate police from the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC) were unable to speak to anyone when they visited the gutted house.
They tried speaking to neighbours, but no one would come out.
One woman was seen mopping her patio.
Asked by the Express if she witnessed anything, she replied she had not.
'When all of that was going on, my head was down,' she said.
Asked if she was willing to comment further, she backed away, saying: 'It have eyes looking at we right now... not me, nah.'
Senior police were asking yesterday for witnesses to come forward and give any information they had to bring the violence to an end.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Curt Simon confirmed only that it was an ongoing gang war from behind prison walls, but would not provide any more details.
He told the Express: 'Of course we continue to invite persons with information to feel free to share your information on this crime and any crime, for that matter, with the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service.'
He said Tuesday's attack is being 'thoroughly investigated by the Homicide Bureau of Investigation and I know the tenacity of that group and they would be pursuing it to bring this thing to some sort of closure.
'Anyone with information, if you see something, say something. Call us and of course we will entertain you in the highest of confidence.'
Assistant Commissioner of Police Oswain Subero said police were 'concerned by the recent reports of shootings and violence. From Tuesday we would have launched some operations and through the night will be running over the next few days.'
He added: 'We will be maintaining a presence in the district, both road and foot patrols will be conducted, and house searches as well. We will be leaving no stone unturned to try to bring law and order back to this community.'
Rural Development and Local Government Minister Faris Al-Rawi, whose ministry has responsibility for CEPEP, could not be immediately reached for comment yesterday evening.
ATTACKED: The house at Second Caledonia, Morvant, which was firebombed yesterday. -Photo: ISHMAEL SALANDY
ON THEIR WAY: Several youths run uphill to set fire to the home of the mother of Reynold Victor, who was murdered in San Juan on Tuesday.
SHARE
