(Trinidad Guardian) While he understood the demands and risks of having his son join the Police Service, Bobby Harrinarine says he did not expect him to meet his demise so soon.
Harrinarine’s son, Ravindra Harrinarine, a constable, was gunned down outside a friend’s home at Bassie Street, Spring Village, Valsayn, on Wednesday night.
Investigators say Harrinarine, 30, who was assigned to the Traffic and Highway Patrol Branch of the Prime Minister’s escort, was speaking with a woman when a car drove up to them.
Three masked gunmen got out of the car and confronted Harrinarine. The woman ran away. She returned shortly after to see Harrinarine bleeding from gunshot wounds.
He died at the scene.
Police said Harrinarine’s licensed pistol was missing.
Investigators found 15 spent 9 mm shells at the scene.
Speaking briefly with Guardian Media at the family’s Santa Cruz home on Thursday, the elder Harrinarine said his son always wanted to be a police officer. He noted that crime had become so prevalent, it was difficult to say what could be done to quell the violence.
“It doesn’t make sense talking about crime because it seems as though nobody can do anything about it or they don’t want to do anything about it. I can’t say give everybody a gun because it would be worse. I don’t know what to say.”
Harrinarine said his son joined the TTPS in 2012 and was passionate about his job. He added that he found out about the murder when his wife received a call from a relative who saw it being reported on a popular talk show.
The elder Harrinarine said his last interaction with his son was when he left for work on Wednesday and promised to return home on Thursday.
One resident recalled the sound of gunfire, but was too afraid to look outside as he thought of businesswoman Lana Sahadeo, who was killed by a stray bullet in the neighbourhood in December, as gunmen chased after their targets from an attack that started on the Churchill Roosevelt Highway. Also killed in that attack were cousins Damien Criss, Levi Criss and Jerry Hollingsworth, who were part of an entourage for Trinibad artiste Kashif “K Man Sixx” Sankar.