Less than two months into 2018, Barbados has recorded its fifth suspicious death, three of them gun-related.
Last night, Adrian Rommel Griffith, also known as “Laddy”, was gunned down in Belleview, Waterford, St Michael.
Police said 34-year-old Griffith was shot a stone’s throw away from his home.
Investigations revealed that around 11:30 p.m. Sunday, Griffith was walking through a track on his way home with his 24-year-old girlfriend when a gunman approached and shot him multiple times before fleeing the scene. His girlfriend, who was unhurt, ran screaming for help. Griffith succumbed to his injuries at the scene.
When a NATION team visited the area yesterday, many residents were tight-lipped about the incident.
However, one resident, who requested anonymity, said she didn’t know the deceased very well since he only recently moved to the area.
“I was by the standpipe Saturday morning early and he came up there with a pan cart to wash some clothes. When I heard the news this morning I couldn’t believe it was him,” she said.
The resident said she heard the gunshots the night before.
“I never thought those gunshots took the life of someone. Hearing gunshots out here is the norm, so I didn’t think anything,” she said, adding that generally she felt safe in the area.
Griffith’s death follows the shooting death of Kesmar Shaquille Codrington, 23, of Brownes Avenue, Bayville, St Michael, on Friday. Codrington was shot sometime around 5:05 p.m., while at Bay Street, St Michael. Police are questioning someone in connection with his death.
On January 9, Terrence Brathwaite was shot at Silver Hill, Christ Church, and died from what appeared to be a wound to his left side.
Last Thursday, Shirley Rogers, who had no fixed place of abode, was found dead under a bus shed on the Princess Alice Highway opposite the bus terminal. No one has been arrested in relation to this incident.
On January 1, homeless man 69-year-old Tyrone “Pitiful” Stoute was found dead on the compound of People’s Mart, Tudor Bridge, St Michael.
Police are appealing to anyone with information on these matters to contact the District “A” Police Station at 430-7242, 430-7295, the hotline at 211, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-TIPS (8477), or the nearest police station. (DB)
