Senior Reporter
Two aunts of murdered police officer Romell Douglas believe that he was lured and killed over a dispute for money arising out of a car accident. However, they want his remaining killer/s to face the death penalty.
Dianne Andrews and Sonja Douglas spoke about the death of their relative at their Morvant home yesterday.
Douglas said: “The day before, he (Douglas) called him (the other driver) and told him that if he didn’t want to pay him, he would have to pay him through courts and he would have to pay him more. So that’s why they set out to kill him. They told him he would get more than the car cost if he had to go to court.”
Police reported that Douglas, 48, was sitting in his white Nissan Tiida along South Bank Road, near Hydraulic Trace, Kelly Village, Caroni, around 11.05 pm on Tuesday night when gunmen confronted him.
During the confrontation, Douglas shot one of the men before he was shot by the man’s accomplices. Police are now hunting two men who later took their wounded friend to the Arima Hospital, where he died. He was later identified as 19-year-old Adetole Ammon, of Printeryville, Arima.
Both women yesterday said they hope that when the remaining two men are held, they will face the full brunt of the law.
“I think when they get him, they should hang him. I’m sorry to say that, but I think he deserves to be hanged,” Andrews said.
Her sister added that she feels no remorse for anyone who kills, so she too was in favour of the killers receiving the death penalty.
The women said only after Ammon was confirmed dead, a cousin of the slain officer told family members that she was part of the medical team trying to save Ammon’s life, not knowing he was partly responsible for her relative’s death.
The women added that while they understood that the job of a police officer is dangerous, they never expected this to happen. They said after becoming a police officer, Douglas moved out of the family home and began his own family and was the father to three children.
“We never thought that he would be dead now, you know, because he doesn’t bother nobody. When he is not in his job, he doesn’t bother anybody. He is a cool guy. Very family orientated, because he deals with his kids, you know. Take care of them and everything,” Andrews said.
She added that she returned to the country from the US three weeks ago in preparation for a week-long celebration this week for a family reunion. That reunion will now be converted to funeral arrangements.
Andrews said: “It’s not the time where we could be spreading joy when this happened. And it’s still trying to go over in your head what happened. It will be some time before we get over it, especially the mother and sister and brother.”
Both women said Douglas was a dedicated police officer, something his former colleague and police public information officer, ASP Owie Russell, confirmed.
Speaking on CNC3’s The Morning Brew programme yesterday, Russell said he worked with Douglas during his time in the Western Division, where Douglas was last assigned.
“That gentleman, he was a very good officer. He was always ready, always came to work in that frame of mind to work. Always tactical, always ready, always. He used to, he liked the hours in the night.”
He added, “He was never interested in promotion. He used to say he want to stay and guide the officers in the charge room. He spent quite a bit of his career in the Criminal Investigation Department, a wealth of knowledge.”
Russell said that was the memory he had of Douglas, and his dedication to duty would always remain with him, adding that he never displayed any disrespect or rudeness to his colleagues and superiors.
