Relatives of a 22-year-old Beetham man who was shot and killed on Sunday night in El Socorro are questioning why police were never informed of his shooting. Speaking with journalists at the Forensic Science Centre (FSC), St James, yesterday, two female relatives of Dillon James, who did not wish to be identified, said they had been visiting the hospital and police station since Sunday, seeking information on the murder.
The women said they had received a call around 8.17 pm on Sunday informing them that James had been shot. The 18th Street, Beetham Gardens, resident was shot three times at Evelyn Trace, El Socorro. His relatives subsequently went to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital but were told that they needed to go to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex.
They saw James briefly at the hospital and a few hours later, at 11.55 pm that night, he died. The following day the relatives were told they needed to go to the FSC. However, James’ autopsy could not be done because the requisite paper work was missing. They were told to return the following day. On Tuesday, the women said, a doctor at the hospital said he wanted to do the autopsy but again it was postponed.
Yesterday, when the women went to the FSC, no police officer accompanied them and they had to inform officers of the Homicide Bureau Region Two about the killing. The women said a relative, who is a police officer, informed them that there was no report of the shooting of James. The family said they were puzzled because all shootings were reported and all hospitals reported to police whenever a patient in their care was shot or died from gunshot injuries.
“No one knows who brought him in the hospital. No police report on the shooting. I find that strange,” one of the women said. The women described James as a “real quiet” person who was an air-conditioning technician. James’ killing has taken the murder toll to 210 for the year, according to figures obtained from the Homicide Bureau of Investigations. For the same period last year there were 237 murders.