(Trinidad Guardian) An influx of “shady characters” in the once quiet community of California, Central Trinidad, is what residents are blaming for the murder of businesswoman Anisha Ali, who was shot dead by bandits who raided their bar yesterday.
Despite the tragedy, Ali’s husband Mustapha said he plans to keep the bar open, saying that it was what his wife would have wanted.
The Ali’s and their 22-year-old daughter were working at the Caldrac Recreational Club Sports Bar and Lounge along Railway Road when, around 12.15 am, four men armed with guns entered.
Speaking at the Forensic Science Centre yesterday, Mustapha said they were about to close up and he went outside to check on an employee who was loading crates of empty bottles onto a van.
His wife, 40, went to check on their daughter. As he opened the door, he was approached by a masked bandit who grabbed on to him.
Another began cuffing him on the side so he held on to both of them and began shouting “Gunman, gunman.” Two other gunmen were already inside stealing cash and other items.
However, when one of them came outside and trained a gun on Ali, he said he pulled one of the unarmed bandits in the way to shield himself.
“He shot once, but missed and when she (Ali) opened the door, the bandit fired at the door and hit her in her temple. That was the end of the road and the bandits just ran away. I realised she got hit so I let go of the bandits so I could see about her. It was an instant death,” Mustapha said.
The saddened father said despite his efforts to protect his family, the bandits were too many to handle alone.
He described Ali’s murder as the worst situation in his life, having been married to her for 22 years, raising two daughters, ages 22 and 12. His elder daughter was not coping well and he said he was clueless as to how to break the news to his 12-year-old daughter.
The Ali’s live three minutes walk from the bar, which they leased on January 15, and had never been robbed.
“We will still keep the bar open because that was what she wanted. Everyone thought we would have failed and but we stayed with the bar because bartending was always part of us. We used to do it for events and only this year decided to open the bar.”
A resident said yesterday that the Ali’s were warned about the “shady characters” in the area, adding that a drug block had developed at the back of the community centre. He said crime in the community was definitely on the increase, despite the many police patrols by Couva police.
“We have been warning certain people of the shady characters they encourage in their business places, but some prefer to look only at making a dollar rather than the safety of their patrons and themselves.
“We warned people at the club of the shady characters going there,” the resident said.
He said that after Government illuminated the recreation ground so that people could exercise at nights, no one uses it because it shared a premises with the bar. He said there was a squatting area in the community and within recent times, a lot of new people have moved in, at the same time the crime rate has been increasing.
“I don’t want to blame squatting for crime, but there is a connection here with squatters gravitating to area.”
