Four teenaged boys and a man were shot late Tuesday night outside the National Gym-nasium on Mandela Avenue after a dispute between two men over a bet at a football match that had been played there erupted onto the street.
Owner of White Castle Fish Shop Jermaine Langevine, who was said to have fired the shots, was later beaten unconscious reportedly by a relative of the wounded man.
Langevine is currently in a critical condition at a city hospital nursing a broken jaw and head injuries. His brother, Jason, was also hospitalized suffering from injuries but it was unclear yesterday where or how he sustained them.
Those who were shot were identified as Dwayne Wharton, Jason Marks and Jamal Thomas, all 17 years old and residents of West Ruimveldt; Terrence Edwards, 15, and Oriley Small, 25, both residents of Charlestown. Wharton, who was shot in the chest was yesterday said to be in a serious condition at the Georgetown Hospital. The others sustained gunshot injuries to their legs, and with the exception of Small were treated and sent away.
Small is a patient at a city hospital.
Police, in a statement yesterday, said that around 23:20 hrs on Tuesday five male persons sustained gunshot injuries at the National Gymnasium, where they were attending a football final. An argument ensued between Small and the suspect, who had sponsored one of the teams in the Inter-pub football final, over a wager. Police said another man handed the suspect a gun which he fired several times into a crowd standing outside the gymnasium, resulting in injuries to the spectators. He subsequently fled the scene.
The statement added that some time later the suspect was accosted by another man who assaulted him and was admitted to a city hospital as a result.
Many fans had flocked to the gymnasium to witness the final between the White Castle Fish Shop and Terrence Bar, which brought the curtains down on the competition that started earlier this month. The Fish Shop remained closed yesterday as the police carried out investigations into the incident.
Persons residing near the establishment said they did not see or hear anything that night. However, one man said his wife had “half her body out the window” but he did not know what was going on as he was sleeping. According to him, he never questioned her nor did she tell him anything.
At the scene of the shooting there were blood spots on the road and in the grass.
When Stabroek News visited Edwards at his home, the Dolphin Secondary School student was lying on a mattress in pain. A wound to his right-side buttocks was bleeding and he said he was scheduled to return to the hospital today to have the wound looked at since the bullet is still lodged.
Despite his discomfort, he recounted that he and a cousin had gone to the game together. He said during the match a Terrence Bar player got a red card and shortly after he saw a crowd on the court. Edwards stated that people started to rush out of the building and he too exited and went on the road to get a bus to go home. He said when he realized that his cousin was not with him he returned to the building to find him.
Edwards recalled that he found his cousin and as they were standing on Mandela Avenue along with a large crowd gunshots rang out.
According to him he was “backing the shots” and so did not see who had fired them.
The young man’s mother, Gail Ann, was very upset over the incident. She explained that she had given him permission to go, as he liked football and would usually attend games. She said some time after 11 pm she received a call that he had been shot and went to the hospital where she found him with a wound to his butt. “Look my son in pain, he still bleeding,” the mother said. “This is of a great concern to me ‘cause he can’t go to school nothing. I am concerned because is innocent people get shoot. All of dem is youth man dem.”
Another teenager who was at the gymnasium when the shooting occurred said that after the ruckus broke out following the issuing of the red card, he ran to the toilet to hide. He too said that he did not see who fired the shots.
Yesterday a senior police officer confirmed receiving reports that Langevine had fired the shots and was subsequently gun butted until he was unconscious.
According to the officer, Langevine and Small had placed a $40,000 bet on the game and later ended up in a heated argument.
Stabroek News was told that an upset Langevine was handed a gun and he walked out of the gymnasium, jumped into his vehicle and before driving off discharged five rounds, hitting persons nearby including the person he had the dispute with.
The officer said a relative of the man later went to Langevine’s business place and during a confrontation, he was gun butted in the head until he was unconscious.
A source at that hospital said yesterday that Langevine underwent surgery for a broken jaw, which is now wired up, making him unable to speak. The source said that the man also suffered injuries to his head and his condition could be deemed critical.
No permission
The senior officer stressed yesterday that the event was unauthorized as no permission was given or sought by the organizers. He went on to explain what when persons want to hold events they must first notify the police and permission must be granted before they proceed with the activity. The officer told this newspaper this procedure has to be followed so that security can be provided to ensure the well-being of the patrons who would be in attendance.
Meanwhile, Thomas’s grandmother, Laura, said that she did not give him permission to attend the game and he “got away” through another entrance while she was going home. The woman said that her grandson should not have gone anywhere, especially since it was a weekday. She informed this newspaper that most of the young boys in the area would go to football matches and her grandson would go with them.
She said that on Tuesday night she went to a wake nearby looking for him but was told that he had gone to the match at the gymnasium. She was later informed that he had been shot.
According to her, the bullet is lodged in his abdomen and while an x-ray was done, she has no information on his current condition.
Laura told Stabroek News that she takes care of Thomas and his younger brother, but neither attends school. She explained that Thomas had attended St George’s up to last year but had failed his examination and was demoted. She said he refused to return because he longer wanted to wear short pants. According to her, he now attends computer classes at the Mark Benschop Foundation along with his brother.
Laura said that Thomas suffers with Sickle Cell disease and since the shooting he has become very pale. She described him as a sickly child who would become unwell if he played too much especially in the sun.
