(Trinidad Guardian) Exactly four years after his grandmother died, an Enterprise father of one was gunned down at his home Monday.
Akeem James, 27, was at his Chrissie Terrace, Enterprise home around 2.30 pm when a car with four men pulled up.
The vehicle’s occupants opened fire, hitting James, 40-year-old Fabien Shade and 35-year-old Samuel Smith.
Both Shade and Samuel were taken to hospital, while James died at the scene.
Police said five minutes earlier, the same group of men pulled up at a house in Bhagaloo Trace, Enterprise and opened fire on a group of men. Another man, who remains unidentified, died on the scene. There were also reports that the shooters also opened fire on the occupants of a third house in the area but police were unable to confirm the details of that incident.
In a release shortly after 6 pm yesterday, the T&T Police Service announced one of the suspected shooters had been arrested.
The TTPS said an AR15 rifle, a pistol and a blue Toyota Aqua were also seized in the exercise.
“Quick action by police led to the arrest of one man who was allegedly involved in the shooting deaths of two men and the wounding of another man earlier today,” the release stated.
Police on the scene said they believe the shootings were linked to gang violence in the area. Guardian Media visited the area yesterday and spoke to one of James’ relatives.
The woman, who asked to remain anonymous, said she last spoke to James on Sunday night at a family reunion. She said James seemed to be in good spirits and was talking about his deceased grandmother.
“We were talking about his grandmother and saying tomorrow (Monday) would make four years since she died,” she said.
The woman said James’ six-year-old son did not live with him and his joy was dampened when he tried to see the child on Sunday evening but was denied by the child’s mother.
“He was enjoying himself with everybody else. When he see all the children who were there, he called his son’s mother to ask her to bring the child but she didn’t bring him,” the woman said.
She said she was told James and the other men were liming at his home when the gunmen pulled up.
“It was the same car that passed through to other streets before and shoot up the place. They come here and then gone again,” she said.
Other residents looked on as police crime scene investigators took photos and collected evidence but they declined to speak.