–father loses third son to gang
warfare
A 27-year-old man was gunned down early yesterday
morning in Kaneville, East Bank Demerara, to become
the third member of his family to die in a gang war
that has simmered for eight years.
The body of Brendon Charles, of Lot 914 Fourth Field,
Kaneville, was found around 06:00 hrs lying facedown
in a yard in First Field.
Charles’ body bore a single gunshot wound to the
chest. However, no bullet casings were found at the
scene.
Barbot
Paul riddled with high-powered weapons
(weapons from the Army)
Ex-soldiers
Oliver Hinckson
He is believed to have been slain around 01:15 hrs,
since residents recalled hearing three gunshots around
that time in the area.
From reports, Charles was killed by a group of gunmen
who had recently been inquiring about his whereabouts.
Relatives implicated at least one of the gunmen in the
execution-style killing of two of Charles’ brothers.
Deion Charles, 23, was gunned down in 2002, while his
brother, Devon Charles, 21, died in similar fashion in
Agricola in 2005, allegedly at the hands of now-dead
gunman Jermaine ‘Skinny’ Charles and his
associates.
Their parents, Kenrick Charles and Marva Cuffy, have
now lost all three of their sons to gang warfare.
A woman who resides near the house where the body was
found told Kaieteur News that she heard three
gunshots. The woman and her husband peeped outside but
saw nothing, and therefore returned to bed.
She said that they went outside at around 06:00 hrs
and spotted a cap lying in the yard to the south of
their residence.
At first, they merely assumed that someone had run
through their neighbour’s property, but then they
spotted a sandal on the neighbour’s bridge, and
another in the yard.
The woman said she identified the sandals as belonging
to her friend, Brendon Charles.
Shortly after, the neighbour emerged from her house
and spotted Charles’ body lying near her fence.
Another resident also recalled hearing three gunshots
around 01:15 hrs. The resident said that he did not
look outside but heard persons running past his home.
Kenrick Charles, the slain man’s father, said the
dispute between his son and the suspects escalated a
few days ago, after Brendon became involved in an
argument with a female associate of the men.
He said that a scuffle then ensued between the
woman’s daughter and his son.
Mr. Charles said that on Tuesday, some of Brendon’s
friends informed him that two of the women’s friends
were planning to kill him.
According to Mr. Charles, one of the men spoke to
Brendon that same day and reassured his son that he
had no intention of harming him.
The victim’s mother, Marva Cuffy, said that her son
spent most of Friday at home. But around 20:00 hrs, he
said he was going “to get some breeze”, and left
the house.
Ms. Cuffy said that around midnight, one of the
suspects came by her home and inquired about
Brendon’s whereabouts.
“He ask where Brendon deh. Give me he phone
number.”
But Ms. Cuffy said one of her daughters warned her
that the man wanted to harm Brendon.
After he left, the woman contacted her son and warned
him that the suspect was looking for him.
“I tell him that (name given) walking on the main
road and looking for him and he must be careful, and
he say ‘alright mummy,’” she recounted
tearfully.
Brendon Charles is survived by a son and two
daughters, aged eight, three and two years. His
reputed wife is also expecting.
Speaking about the tragedy that has dogged his family,
Mr. Charles said that he witnessed when his son, Deion
Charles, was gunned down in 2002 by one of the men
suspected of killing Brendon.
According to him, some of the gunmen had accused one
of his sons of killing Devon Cambridge, whose bound
and bullet-riddled body was found in D’Urban
Backlands in 2006.
Then in June, 2005, his other son, Devon Charles, was
gunned down in Agricola.
Sunday, August 09, 2009