Senior Reporter
Hours after Sea Lots resident Edwin “Teo” Richardson was killed by a man he had grown up with in the neighbourhood yesterday, his relatives were urging calm and appealing to residents to avoid retaliatory violence.
Richardson, 26, of Production Avenue, Sea Lots, was stabbed multiple times by a 38-year-old man during an alleged argument around 7 am.
While the reason for the dispute remained unclear, residents said it was believed to have stemmed from a disagreement over the “best spot to sell weed.”
In the aftermath of the stabbing, the suspect reportedly chased another man with the intention of attacking him. However, he was shot by an unknown assailant, causing him to drop the murder weapon and collapse in a pool of blood.
Both Richardson and the suspect, who live only a short distance apart, were taken to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital.
Richardson was pronounced dead at 7.55 am, while the suspect underwent emergency treatment and remained warded in critical condition.
A father of four, Richardson had children ranging in age from two to eight years old. He had been released from prison three months ago.
Speaking outside the family home, Richardson’s father, Edwin Richardson Sr, appeared reflective rather than angry as he grappled with the tragedy. Despite the circumstances, he insisted that the accused attacker was not a criminal by nature.
Revealing that he had been involved in a longstanding feud with the suspect’s father, he said their children had never been part of that conflict. He also expressed hope that the suspect survives so that he could offer him some advice.
“I want him to live so I could tell him what I want to tell him. Yuh ain’t think before yuh act. Yuh must think before yuh act. In everything, think before yuh act,” he said.
Describing the suspect as someone he knew well, the grieving father added, “He’s a nice fella inno.”
He urged people to walk away from disputes before they escalate into violence.
“Think and walk away, doh bun no skin. If yuh doh think, yuh right go be wrong,” he said, adding that even when a person is right in an argument, sometimes giving up that right is the wiser choice.
The elder Richardson said he was awakened by the argument between the two men and attempted to intervene, but the confrontation escalated before he could prevent the attack.
Meanwhile, community elders also appealed for peace, stressing that the killing was not linked to any ongoing gang conflict in the area.
They said that while the recent peace efforts among feuding Trinibad artistes were welcome, similar efforts were needed among neighbours and residents to maintain harmony within the community.
