A police investigation has been launched to identify and arrest persons who discharged shots during the ‘Baderation’ concert, which was held at the National Park on Friday night.
The show came to an abrupt end sometime between Friday night and early yesterday morning after shots were fired and glass bottles were thrown into the air while Jamaican dancehall artiste Skeng was performing on stage.
The concert drew a large crowd and many in attendance were forced to run for cover as chaos erupted and some persons were reported to have been robbed during the scrum. Skeng, also known as Kevaun Douglas, had been performing the song “Protocol,” which reportedly prompted some approving supporters to fire off shots. Videos of the chaos went viral on Facebook and TikTok.
The Guyana Police Force (GPF), in a press statement issued yesterday, said that investigators were reviewing CCTV footage and social media videos in the hopes of identifying the perpetrators.
The release confirmed that a vendor of East Ruimveldt, Georgetown was arrested after he was allegedly found in possession of an illegal 9mm firearm with a live round of ammunition.
Further, the police also appealed to members of the public who might have knowledge or information about the crimes to share same with the police to assist investigators in identifying the perpetrators.
The incidents that occurred raised questions about the security at the event.
In its press statement, the GPF said that Commissioner of Police (ag) Clifton Hicken called a meeting with promoter of the event yesterday morning to deal with the breach of security and discharge of gunshots.
The statement explained that the security posture at the event was discussed and recommendations were made for strict compliance prior to the hosting of such events in the future.
It said the topics discussed were stakeholders approach with promoters, members of the Fire Service, Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the police, increased police posture in partnership with the private sector, prohibition of beverages in bottles and improved security search with the use of metal detectors and scanners being employed.
Among those present at the meeting were Deputy Commissioner (Administration), Calvin Brutus, Deputy Commissioner (Operations), Ravindradat Budhram, Head of Special Branch Errol Watts, Commander for Regional Division 4‘A’ Simon McBean, and promoter Rawle Ferguson from Hits and Jams Entertainment.
