A wanted man was shot dead while another was wounded early yesterday morning when a police SWAT team moved to arrest suspects in recent high profile murders and robberies at a house at Craig, East Bank Demerara.
A police constable was also shot in the 2AM confrontation, during which police say ranks came under fire, forcing them to engage the suspects.
Police said Rolston Morrison, 29, was killed in the shootout and Warren McKenzie, 23, was wounded, while seven other men were arrested. The police credited “a concerned citizen” for assistance in tracking the suspects, who have been linked to the recent murders of miner Travis Rudder and mall owner Ganesh Ramlall as well as last week’s armed attack on Justice Nicola Pierre and her husband at their Felicity, East Coast Demerara home.
The arrest of the men also came on the heels of charges being laid against two men for the murder of Rudder and the attack on the judge. Yesterday’s operation by a 25-strong police team came after a surge in murders and robberies which has put the new government under pressure.
Morrison, 29, called ‘Mappy’ and ‘Sadam’ and whose addresses were given as Nabaclis, East Coast Demerara, Agricola, Georgetown and Providence, East Bank Demerara, had been wanted by police in connection with the murder of Dwayne Kennedy, who was shot and killed at the Golden Grove Market on March 14th.
A police statement said a wanted bulletin had been issued for him on March 18th.
McKenzie, of Lot 80 Brutus Street, Agricola, was said to be hospitalised under police guard at the Georgetown Public Hospital. Up to late yesterday afternoon, he was undergoing surgery in an unconscious state at the hospital.
The wounded constable, who was shot in the right thigh, is in a stable condition at a private hospital in the city. He was visited yesterday by Commis-sioner of Police Seelall Persaud, Divisional Com-mander Assistant Com-missioner Clifton Hicken and Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum.
The Special Weapons And Tactics (SWAT) team was greenlit by the former government in 2013 to strengthen the police force’s law enforcement capabilities, particularly to make specialised interventions, thereby, ensuring law and order is maintained, and prospective threats are neutralised.
‘Fishy’
According to the police statement on the operation, the suspects were tracked and the SWAT team was deployed along with detectives to make the arrests.
However, the police said ranks came under fire and the constable was shot. As a result, the wounded constable and other ranks returned fire and fatally wounded one suspect—later identified as Morrison—and wounded another suspect—later identified as McKenzie. Seven other male suspects who were in the building were taken into police custody, police added.
In addition, police announced that a 9mm Glock pistol with two magazines and 25 matching rounds along with two wristwatches, suspected to have been stolen, were recovered.
The men were confronted at a two-storey wooden house at Lot 118 First Street, Craig, which is divided into four apartments. Only one of the apartments was occupied by the men. The apartment was rented about three months ago by a couple, after which a number of other persons started to show up, sources say.
This newspaper was told that the group of men gathered at the apartment on Monday night and had a “get-together” hours before the police arrived.
A resident in the area told this newspaper that he thought that it was “fishy” that so many men were staying together in a one-bedroom apartment. The man said he nevertheless remained silent about his suspicions. He added that it was not until yesterday that he realised he was living “under the guns.”
According to the man, he was awakened around 2AM by the sound of rapid gunfire. He said the first sound he heard before he could have made it out of his bed was the shouts of one of the men yelling, “Aww!” A series of shots soon followed.
He also said he was beaten by the police. “They beat me to talk what I know but I maintained that I don’t know anything because I really don’t and they left me …” he said. “Three of the men they drag out and the rest they just arrest and put them [in the] back of a vehicle,” he added.
Up to late yesterday morning, spots of dried blood were still visible on the roadway in front of the house, while the entire yard was wet as it had just been cleaned.
Other residents were also reluctant to speak on the record when approached yesterday.
One man, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told this newspaper that he and his family were awakened by the loud gunshots and screams. “I just hear ‘Pow! Pow!’ over and over and while the men went hollering, I hear a policeman… hollering, ‘This he, this is the one that kill ‘Boyo’ (Ramlall). And another one, with a strong voice, I hear he saying, ‘Come out from down there! Why you hiding under the bed?’” he said.
A woman said, “The people them recently started living there and the building just refurbished. I don’t know the guys that living inside. There was also a female that would visit the apartment occasionally.” She suggested that the police opened fire on the men after entering the apartment. “The police them come from three directions and circle the place. Them go from the back of the house, kick down the door and just start shoot. They just can’t come in people house like that and start shoot… none of them boy didn’t shoot, is the police do all the shooting themselves,” she said.
Murders
Blanhum yesterday reiterated that the police are conducting investigations into the two murders, the armed robbery of the judge at her home as well as other robberies.
Rudder, a miner, who had been accused of murder and other crimes, was killed after shots were fired through the bedroom window of his residence at Nandy Park early on the morning of June 21st. His fiancée Mawanza Gill and their 18-month-old son were also both shot multiple times in the attack.
Ramlall, 48, of La Jalousie, West Coast Demerara, was riddled with bullets at about 12:10AM on July 5th. He is reported to have sustained at least seven shots, including one to the head. Reports indicate that he was confronted by four gunmen, who were all heavily armed.
While the man’s relatives believed that his murder was a “hit,” Blanhum told this newspaper that the information taken from the dead man’s wife established that the businessman was killed during a robbery.
Ramlall was the owner of the Regent Multi Complex Mall, located at the corner of Regent and Wellington streets.
The attack on the judge and her husband occurred at about 1:20AM last Thursday after a group of men overpowered and tied up a special constable who was on duty close to the house. The armed men, after battering the couple, escaped with a portable safe containing money and jewellery and a suitcase with articles. However, a confrontation with an armed security guard at a nearby premises resulted in the robbers leaving behind the safe and suitcase, while they fled on foot before boarding a waiting vehicle nearby. Police subsequently arrested four men.
Former murder accused Orpheus Johnson was on Monday charged with killing Rudder as well as another man, Gladstone George. Premnauth Samaroo, 49, of Lot 16 Craig Street, Campbellville was also charged on Monday with armed robbery of Justice Pierre and her husband Mohamed Chand during a home invasion.
