AS Tobago continues to reel from a record 19 murders for 2024, Snr Supt Rodhill Kirk has urged Tobagonians to work with police as "we are not magicians."

Trinidadian woman Victoria Guerra, aka "Dolly Boss," became the island's latest murder victim on August 5. She was shot while liming in Argyle. She died at the Roxborough hospital.

Moriah resident Ezra Sylvester and two other men were shot while liming near a car park on Carrington Street, Scarborough on August 3.

According to police, a black Matrix pulled up and five masked men came out the vehicle and started firing at the group before escaping in the vehicle. The men were taken to the Scarborough General Hospital but Sylvester was pronounced dead on arrival. The Matrix was later found abandoned along Milford Road, Scarborough.

It was the second time in about a week that Sylvester was attacked. On July 26 he was shot by gunmen but survived. Police said Sylvester was not co-operating with their investigation.

Kirk said gangs were targeting specific people. He said the police had been trying to get information on gangs so arrests could be made.

"The thing is, although we have been working, we wouldn’t know when people would strike, but we know that they have the capability and who they may be targeting. And that is why we try to reach out to some of those persons to actually exercise a level of care and caution as well.

"But most of the persons are persons who are not willing to co-operate with the police and they’re willing to chance it themselves, and this is how it usually ends.”

He said murders were a national problem.

“We’ve seen 16 alone in one weekend in Trinidad. It is not isolated to Tobago alone. It has been a growing trend with the increase in gang-alliances activities. So it is something that whilst it is our aim and objective to dismantle criminal gangs to reduce the violent crime, we have been doing our bit. But at the same time, we can’t be everywhere all the time, but we are doing our bit.”

[caption id="attachment_1100704" align="alignnone" width="836"] Ezra Sylvester -[/caption]

He added: “We have made some small steps, we would have charged persons for violent crime in the recent past. For the year, we have put several persons before the courts for shooting, some of them who are now on bail, and it is the same group of persons keep recurring.

"The police have done our part, these persons are entitled to bail, they were granted bail, and some are coming out and we’re getting the same information about the same people.”

He called for public support and a collaborative approach to tackling crime.

“We would see that there were some activities recently with the licensing officers working alongside the police and you would realise how the Tobago public were critical.

"But again – a vehicle was used to perpetrate the crime that perpetrated there, a vehicle was used on the one before and a vehicle was used on the one before that. It tells me that criminals are using the opportunity to use a motor vehicle to come into the s