标签： Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

A series of targeted police operations carried out over the weekend in Saint Vincent have led to the seizure of two unlicensed firearms and 21 rounds of ammunition, resulting in firearms charges against five local men — two of whom already have well-documented connections to serious violent crime. All five suspects have been refused bail ahead of upcoming court appearances.

The first group of defendants includes 38-year-old mechanic Zane Dopwell, a resident of Walvaroo, and 33-year-old entrepreneur Kyle Ragguette from Long Wall. Law enforcement alleges that the pair were found in possession of an unregistered Glock 19 semi-automatic pistol and 15 rounds of 9mm ammunition during the operation in Paul’s Avenue. Both men face two charges under the country’s Firearms Act: illegal possession of a firearm and illegal possession of ammunition.

When the pair appeared before the Serious Offences Court, they entered formal not guilty pleas to both charges. Despite their pleas, the court rejected their bail applications and ordered the men held in official custody until their next scheduled hearing on October 5.

A second group of three suspects, all residents of the Diamond community, were taken into custody in connection with a separate firearms seizure in Kingstown. The defendants are 29-year-old mechanic Tearon James, 32-year-old tradesman Terrell McLean, and 32-year-old labourer Akeem Peniston. Police allege that the trio were in illegal possession of a Diamondback .380 semi-automatic pistol and six rounds of .380 ammunition, with no valid licenses issued under the Firearms Act. Like the first pair, all three pleaded not guilty to the charges against them during their court appearance. The judge denied bail for the trio and adjourned the case until October 12.

Two of the five suspects are no strangers to local law enforcement and have already made headlines in connection with other serious violent incidents. James, one of the three Diamond defendants, was originally charged with manslaughter over the January 2022 stabbing death of 23-year-old Diamond labourer Kevin George. In May 2022, the charge against James and co-accused Lesroy Stapleton was upgraded to murder, before being downgraded back to manslaughter during a preliminary inquiry in January 2023. James was granted EC$30,000 bail at that time, and the manslaughter case is still awaiting a hearing before the High Court.

Ragguette, the second suspect with prior high-profile connections, has survived multiple separate gun attacks, including a 2024 shooting in Paul’s Avenue that left another man dead. On September 13 that year, a shooting in the area killed Jawanza “Sanga” Fraser, who died of multiple torso gunshot wounds after being transported to Milton Cato Memorial Hospital. Ragguette suffered only a graze wound to the hand in that incident. This was not his first such attack: in December 2022, Ragguette was shot multiple times — once in the upper right thigh and twice in the right foot — during an attack on a vehicle he was traveling in Lowmans Bay. The shooting occurred as the group was leaving a public entertainment event. Ragguette’s traveling companion, 34-year-old Diallo Small of Frenches, was shot five times in the attack and sustained serious injuries.

Following the weekend seizures and arrests, the Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (RSVGPF) reiterated its ongoing appeal to the public to help root out illegal weapons and criminal activity across the country. Members of the public with information related to unregistered firearms, ammunition, or other crimes are encouraged to submit tips to Police Control at 457-1211, or to contact the closest local police station. Police confirmed that investigations into the latest firearms cases are still ongoing.

A mass shooting that left four people dead and four others wounded has shaken the Caribbean nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, prompting law enforcement to launch a full investigation, ramp up public security patrols and call for community cooperation to curb rising gun violence.

According to acting Commissioner of Police Trevor “Buju” Bailey, the gunfire broke out in the Green Hill neighborhood shortly before 10:30 p.m. local time on Friday. First responding officers discovered four fatal victims at the scene: two bodies lying on a public road, a woman’s body found inside a parked vehicle along the road, and a fourth body on adjacent undeveloped land. All four deaths showed clear signs of gunshot trauma, Bailey confirmed during an official press briefing held in Kingstown on Saturday.

Four additional people were transported to local medical facilities with gunshot injuries. Of those, two have already been treated and released, while the two remaining patients continue to receive care under police supervision, Bailey added. Unofficial sources with direct knowledge of the incident shared the identities of the deceased with iWitness News: all three Green Hill residents Steve King, 22, Antonio Samuel, 30, and Shaqueil Peters, 26, and 23-year-old Shevon Chandler from Paul’s Avenue. The injured victims include a 20-year-old Green Hill woman with a hand wound, a 17-year-old male student hit in the arm, leg and hand, a 28-year-old man with an arm injury, and a 16-year-old mechanic wounded in the thigh, forearm and hand.

At the briefing, Bailey confirmed investigators discovered graffiti-style markings on walls and buildings within the immediate vicinity of the shooting scene that have known ties to an organized criminal group. He declined to share specifics about the content of the markings or confirm a direct link to the Friday night killings, however, and instead used the platform to issue a public appeal to the nation’s youth.

“I call upon the young people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines to be model citizens, to desist from the path of crime and violence,” Bailey said. “Violence has no place in Vincentian society. It brings unending pain and disruption to families, it shatters community cohesion, and leaves ordinary people afraid to leave their homes after dark. This is not the St. Vincent and the Grenadines that we know. This is not the St. Vincent and the Grenadines that we love, and it is not the future any of us want for our country.”

Bailey offered a public assurance that the national police force is deploying all available resources to protect communities and restore lasting peace across the country. As of Saturday’s press conference, acting Assistant Commissioner of Police Brenton Smith, who leads the force’s crime-fighting division, confirmed no arrests have been made in connection with the Green Hill shooting. Investigators are still working to map out the sequence of events and identify all persons responsible for the attack.

Smith cautioned the public against rampant speculation linking the Green Hill shooting to a second shooting reported in Ottley Hall around 1 a.m. Saturday, noting that any connection between the two incidents would only be confirmed through concrete forensic and investigative evidence. When asked if organized criminal groups were behind the attack, he said official details would be released only once the investigation is complete.

Addressing widespread public concern about rising retaliatory gang violence, Bailey acknowledged that law enforcement has documented a pattern of tit-for-tat attacks between rival groups in recent months. He condemned all acts of gun violence and urged any member of the public with information about illegal weapons or planned criminal activity to contact police immediately.

In response to growing public anxiety about repeated shootings in public spaces and whether police have the security situation under control, Smith outlined a series of enhanced security measures already being implemented across Kingstown and its surrounding areas. These include expanded foot and mobile patrols, strengthened intelligence sharing between different police units, and ongoing random search operations to seize illegal firearms.

Smith said initial public feedback on the increased visible police presence has been positive, with many local residents reaching out to senior officers to report they feel safer going about their daily lives. The enhanced patrols will remain in place indefinitely, he added, while acknowledging that there is still room to improve trust and collaboration between law enforcement and local communities.

Bailey pointed to recent large-scale firearms recoveries as proof of the force’s ongoing progress in combating illegal gun possession. Just one week before the Green Hill shooting, officers seized an AR-15 rifle and more than 40 rounds of ammunition during an operation in Kingstown. In a separate earlier patrol, officers found an illegal firearm on a suspect who was subsequently arrested and charged with weapons offenses.

While not every search turns up illegal weapons, Smith noted that the visible presence of patrols and search operations acts as a powerful deterrent, discouraging criminals from carrying firearms in public. Law enforcement operations targeting violent criminals and recovering illegal weapons will continue, and will be intensified if necessary to bring down violence rates, he confirmed.

Bailey acknowledged that the root of the nation’s gun crisis lies in porous borders that allow traffickers to smuggle firearms into the country by both air and sea. He said the country’s Coast Guard maintains continuous patrols of territorial waters, and police are partnering closely with regional security bodies including the Regional Security System to crack down on cross-border weapons trafficking. He declined to share specific operational details about port and airport surveillance, but confirmed police have made multiple arrests at these entry points in illegal drug smuggling cases.

Police regularly arrest suspected gang members, Bailey said, but fully dismantling organized criminal groups will require new legislative support. St. Vincent and the Grenadines currently does not have specific anti-gang legislation on the books, though the issue is currently under active discussion by policymakers.

Smith called on parents, teachers and community leaders to play a more active role in monitoring young people’s online activity, noting that many youth are exposed to gang-related radicalizing content on social media that pushes them toward violence. For residents directly impacted by the Green Hill shooting, Smith confirmed police officers will conduct follow-up outreach to assess the psychological trauma experienced by community members and connect them with support services.

Law enforcement has not yet released details about the type of firearms used in the Green Hill attack, noting that this information will be shared once forensic processing of the scene is complete. As of the Saturday briefing, the national homicide count for 2026 stands at 37. Both senior officers urged the public to remain calm, avoid spreading unconfirmed speculation on social media, and share any information that could help investigators solve the case. Smith specifically warned against circulating unsubstantiated allegations, graphic photos or unconfirmed voice notes, noting that such content inflicts additional unnecessary harm on grieving families and can undermine the ongoing investigation.

In a press briefing held Saturday in Kingstown, the top leadership of the Royal St. Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (RSVGPF) has confirmed details of a major drug bust first teased on social media last month, while also laying out an aggressive, ongoing strategy to curb rising violent gun crime and stem cross-border trafficking of illegal contraband.

The confirmation marked the first official update from the RSVGPF on the Canouan seizure after an initial September 17 Facebook post that first alerted the public to the operation. In that early social media alert, the force announced that its Coast Guard Service had launched a major drug seizure operation in the Grenadines that same day, recovered a large shipment of suspected cocaine, and had multiple individuals in custody for questioning. The post noted investigators were still processing the scene and securing evidence, with a promise of further updates once appropriate.

Addressing reporter questions at Saturday’s briefing, acting Commissioner of Police Trevor “Buju” Bailey officially put the size of the seizure at 95 kilograms of cocaine. Bailey clarified that while three individuals remain in custody to assist with ongoing investigations, no formal arrests or charges have been filed to date. Insisting on the importance of evidence-based prosecution, Bailey noted, “I cannot take someone before the court on mere suspicion. I have to have evidence, hard evidence.”

The commissioner declined to release additional specific details about the location of the seizure or the backgrounds of the individuals being questioned, but emphasized that the entire shipment would never reach public markets, blocking a major load of illegal narcotics from entering local or regional supply chains.

Saturday’s press conference was primarily focused on the RSVGPF’s response to a surge in gun violence, including a fatal shooting that left four people dead in Green Hill the previous night. Bailey outlined a series of recent successful weapons seizures, including one earlier in September where officers recovered an AR-15 rifle and more than 40 rounds of ammunition in Kingstown. In that case, 41-year-old machine operator Damon Mason of Ottley Hall has been granted EC$20,000 bail. Mason is accused of illegally possessing the AR-15 and 19 rounds of 5.56mm ammunition without a valid license on September 10.

Bailey also referenced a second separate weapons incident roughly two weeks prior, where patrolling officers discovered an illegal firearm during a routine search, leading to an arrest and formal charges for weapons and ammunition offenses.

Outlining operational next steps, Acting Assistant Commissioner of Police Brenton Smith confirmed that the force will maintain both mobile vehicle patrols and foot patrols across Kingstown and its surrounding suburbs. These deployments will be paired with increased random searches of individuals and expanded intelligence sharing between different police units. Smith explained that the stepped-up operations serve two key goals: removing illegal firearms already in circulation and deterring potential offenders from carrying weapons in the first place. He added that operations targeting violent crime and illegal weapons will continue indefinitely, and will be intensified in high-need areas as required.

Smith issued two appeals to the public: first, he urged all residents to share any information they have about illegal weapons or criminal activity with law enforcement, noting that even seemingly minor details can prove critical to advancing active investigations. Second, he asked the public and media outlets to avoid spreading unconfirmed information that could cause unnecessary distress to affected families or compromise ongoing investigations.

Addressing long-term structural challenges to crime fighting, Bailey acknowledged that the country’s extensive borders remain vulnerable to cross-border trafficking of both narcotics and illegal firearms, noting that weapons are currently entering the country via both air and sea routes. To counter this flow, the RSVGPF has boosted Coast Guard patrols across the nation’s territorial waters and is working closely with key regional security partners, including the Regional Security System, to disrupt trafficking networks. Additional resources have also been allocated to increase screening of people and goods entering the country through official ports of entry.

When asked to comment on the status of surveillance scanning equipment at the country’s main airport and container port, Bailey declined to discuss specific operational capabilities or arrangements, but confirmed that the RSVGPF has previously made multiple arrests at both facilities in cases involving trafficking of cocaine, marijuana and other controlled substances.

The commissioner also highlighted new investments in the force’s investigative capacity, noting that the government has provided new funding for upgraded forensic equipment. A key new asset, a comparative microscope, will allow investigators to examine and compare firearm-related evidence locally for the first time, eliminating the need to send evidence overseas for testing. Regional forensic experts will also deploy to support the local police force for a 12-month period to build local capacity and assist with ongoing cases.