In a tense late-night operation that closes one high-profile homicide case but adds to growing police violence statistics in the country, an 18-year-old suspect wanted for the killing of a Trinidad and Tobago police officer was killed in a shootout with law enforcement at his girlfriend’s residential property in Matura Tuesday night.
Hassan “H-Man” Johnson was shot dead at a small two-bedroom concrete home located at the 7 3/4-mile marker along Main Road, Mora Trace, Matura. His death pushes the total number of people killed by police operations across Trinidad and Tobago to 21 so far this year, according to official law enforcement data.
Authorities launched the targeted manhunt after receiving credible intelligence shortly before 11 p.m. confirming Johnson had been hiding out at the property, after going off the grid following the July 28 murder of Police Constable Rommel Douglas. Johnson had avoided his own registered residence on Second Street in Printeryville, Arima, to evade capture for weeks.
A multi-unit tactical team assembled to execute the apprehension, drawing specialist officers from the Home Invasion Team, Special Investigations Unit, the Western and South-Western Division Gang Units, and the Deputy Commissioner of Police Operations Team, supported by troops from the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force. Law enforcement surrounded the property fully before moving in through an entryway on the building’s eastern side.
As armed officers entered the residence, police officials confirmed Johnson opened fire on the responding team. Officers immediately returned fire, striking Johnson multiple times. Two other civilians — a 19-year-old man and Johnson’s girlfriend — were inside the home during the exchange of gunfire but escaped the incident without physical injury.
Johnson was quickly rushed to the nearby Sangre Grande Hospital, where medical staff pronounced him dead at approximately 11:55 p.m. The two unharmed civilians were taken into police custody for questioning following the shootout.
Johnson was the primary suspect in the July 28 killing of Douglas, an officer assigned to the Four Roads Police Station. The fatal attack on the off-duty officer unfolded at around 11:05 p.m. that night, as Douglas sat in his parked vehicle at the intersection of Hydraulic Trace and Caroni South Bank Road in Kelly Village. A white Nissan Tiida pulled alongside Douglas’s car, carrying the alleged robbery crew that targeted the officer.
Police reports indicate the occupants of the Tiida attempted to rob Douglas, triggering a chaotic exchange of gunfire that left Douglas fatally wounded. One of the suspected accomplices, 19-year-old Adetola Ammon of Arima, was also killed during the encounter; law enforcement investigators believe Ammon was mistakenly shot by one of his co-conspirators during the attack.
Douglas was laid to rest on August 6, after a public funeral service held at the Morvant Central Community Centre on Cipriani Street in Morvant. During the memorial service, loved ones and colleagues remembered Douglas as a devoted family man who prioritized his relatives and held deep commitment to those close to him.