Commissioner of Police Enville Williams has confirmed that there is a link between the Stoney Ground and Buccament Bay killings that left three people dead on the weekend.
He said in a message posted on social media that the constabulary has drawn the line and will “bring everything we’ve got to the fight” against criminals in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
“There are moments in the life of a nation that demand more than mere observation, that demand a reckoning. Today, we stand at such a crossroad,” he said in a message posted to social media.
“The brazen gun violence that erupted in Stoney Ground, unfolding in the stark light of day within the sanctuary of commerce and continued hours later in Buccament Bay, is not merely a police matter.”
Last week Friday, April 10, Enrique John aka Shoubu, 29, and Raheem Guy, 22, who sources have described as one of John’s close associates, were shot and killed in Stoney Grounds.
John died inside a shop at the Russells Shopping Centre and Guy was shot and killed on the sidewalk outside the Caribbean Medical Imaging Centre.
Then, on Saturday, the body of 19-year-old Perrance Matthews, one of John’s relatives, of Layou, was found along the river defence in Buccament Bay, with gunshots to the head and chest.
The police chief said the killings were “a direct assault on the peace, the dignity and the very soul of this country.
“Three men are dead, another is wounded, and everything essential watching this unfold is now asking a question they should never have to ask, ‘Is it safe to step outside?’
“… This is where we draw the line, and we’ll bring everything we’ve got to the fight,” Williams said.
He said the police force would “shift our focus and our footing to an absolute operational offensive.
“We are focusing every lawful resource on this, and from here forward, our actions will speak louder than any words. We will be mobilising the machinery of the state to hunt down those who believe they can act without consequence,” Williams said.
“To the criminal elements who believe they can transform the society into private hunting grounds, your arrogance is your undoing. Anyone who provides a roof, a vehicle or a wall of silence for these killers, you are not bystanders. You are accomplices to the destruction of your own country.
“Under the full weight of the law, we will find you, we will break the structure that sustains you. The pattern of gun-related lawlessness is a cancer that seeks to metastasise into our town and villages, but the nation is only as safe as its citizens are courageous.”
He said the anger of the law-abiding heart of this country was justified.
“Your anxiety is understood, but your silence is the only thing that allows this darkness to breed.
“If you possess a single fragment of information, a name, a sighting, a whispered plan, bring it forward. Do not let misplaced loyalty become the sodder under which more of our sons and daughters are buried. Do not succumb to the urge for private retribution,” he said.
He continued:
“Vigilantism is not justice. It is the fuel that feeds the fire. Let the law be your shield and the police your sword. I wish to crave your indulgence and ask for your understanding for the upcoming days. Bear with us. We are doing this with your best interest at heart.
“The Criminal Investigations department and the major crime units are on standby at 456-1801, and 457-1211, and within the next couple of days, a QR code will be inaugurated to enable you to pass information freely.
“Your identity will be guarded with the highest level of confidence. This is the hour for our national resolve. This will not be defined by the violence of a few, but by the unity of many.
“We will reclaim our streets, we will restore our peace, and we will ensure St. Vincent and the Grenadines remains a land where law and order are absolute.”
Police have since charged John’s mother, Rosia John and fellow Layou resident Augustas Matthews, 19, with murder and conspiracy to murder in connection with Matthews’ death.
Miss John has also been charged with possession of and trafficking in cocaine.
They are slated to appear in court later on Friday.
