A early-morning shooting at a private residence in Wallerfield has left 34-year-old Anthony Francis dead and two others, including Francis’ pregnant wife, wounded, triggering a firm response from senior Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) leadership who frame the killing as a desperate reaction by criminal networks facing intensified law enforcement pressure under the current national state of emergency (SoE).
The violent incident unfolded around 2 a.m. on the day of the report, when Francis, also known by the alias “Smalls,” his pregnant partner, her one-year-old toddler from a previous relationship, and another man named locally as “Lijah” were all resting inside their Moonan Road home. Investigators preliminary findings indicate the attacker fired multiple rounds through an open bedroom window, targeting the sleeping Francis directly. Francis suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the chest and neck, and was pronounced dead on arrival at Sangre Grande Hospital. His pregnant wife was also hit by gunfire, though medical officials confirm her injuries are not life-threatening; the one-year-old child was unharmed in the attack. “Lijah,” who was in an adjacent bedroom during the shooting, was also wounded and transported for medical care. Two spent bullet casings were recovered from the scene near Francis’ bed, according to police accounts.
Police records confirm Francis had recently been taken into custody as a suspect in a vandalism case targeting multiple vehicles in the Wallerfield area, but was released without charge following questioning. Local media outlet Express attempted to secure comment from local Member of Parliament Phillip Watts, representing La Horquetta/Talparo, on the killing, but received no response by the time of publication.
This shooting marks the second high-profile fatal attack targeting sleeping victims in Trinidad and Tobago in the span of a single week. Seven days prior, an almost identical modus operandi was used in a St James shooting that left 25-year-old Joseph Sutton and his 11-month-old son Jayden—just four days shy of his first birthday—dead. In that case, the attacker also fired through a bedroom window, striking the sleeping pair. Both victims were pronounced dead at Port of Spain General Hospital after relatives discovered them following the gunfire.
Responding to questions about the killing, which comes during an active state of emergency declared to curb rising violent crime, TTPS Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations) Suzette Martin emphasized the shooting is not a sign of failure, but evidence that law enforcement operations are successfully squeezing criminal networks. “What you are seeing is a direct response from criminals who are under sustained pressure,” Martin explained in a WhatsApp statement to media. “The TTPS has increased operations, disrupted networks, and removed weapons from the streets, and that pressure is forcing desperate reactions.”
Martin rejected any suggestion that police would scale back their enforcement efforts in the wake of the attack, saying the incident has only hardened the service’s commitment to rooting out organized violent crime. “We are not backing down. In fact, these incidents strengthen our resolve. Our operations will continue, and they will intensify,” she said.
To increase public safety in the Wallerfield area following the attack, Martin announced an immediate surge of uniformed and plainclothes officers to the region, paired with expanded targeted enforcement and intelligence-driven investigations. She added that investigators already hold promising leads in the case and are working quickly to identify and apprehend the perpetrator.
Delivering a clear warning to criminal elements operating across the country, Martin said: “There is no safe space for criminals, whether in public or in private homes. TTPS will find you and we will not allow criminal elements to dictate the narrative or undermine the work being done under the SoE.”
Defending the ongoing state of emergency as an effective tool for crime reduction, Martin pushed back against implicit criticism that the SoE has failed to stop killings. “The state of emergency is working. It is disrupting criminal activity, restricting movement, and allowing us to act with greater speed and authority,” she said. “The public may not see every success, but the results are there: arrests, firearm seizures, and the dismantling of criminal operations.”
Martin noted that police measure the success of their anti-crime campaigns not by isolated acts of violence by desperate criminal groups, but by the consistent pressure being applied to illegal networks and the long-term reduction in community harm. “It was the police who remained in control, and they were not measuring success based on isolated incidents but measured it by the sustained pressure they were applying and the long-term impact on crime,” she restated. “We are focused, we are relentless, and we will continue to take the fight to those who threaten public safety.”
As of the night after the Wallerfield shooting, the national murder toll for the current calendar year stands at 96, a 10% reduction from the 106 recorded at the same point last year.
