By Laurel V Williams

Copyright newsday

THE latest police-involved shooting has left a father and son dead, and elicited a terse comment from Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander that this was the end result when some people in society cannot behave.

The killings came after police received about 20 reports of extortion particularly in the Central Division, over the past few weeks, and began intense investigations. This led officers of the Anti-Extortion Unit to swoop down on a property in Cunupia, on which a church is located, during the early morning hours of October 2, with the intention of arresting suspects.

Police said that around 5.10 am, officers from the unit were carrying out an operation at Mon Plasir Road, Cunupia, in connection with reports of money being demanded by menace, commonly referred to as extortion.

Upon arrival at a property on Persad Avenue, where the Community Bible Church is housed, the officers identified themselves and later used force to enter the building. They were allegedly met with gunfire on the ground floor.

The officers returned fire and both Alvin Bharath, 52, and his son Avindra Bharath, 28, were shot. They were taken to the Chaguanas district health centre and pronounced dead on arrival.

Police said two revolvers and a pistol were recovered at the compound and two relatives of the dead men, including a 51-year-old woman and a 15-year-old boy, were arrested.

Contacted for comment on October 2, Minister Alexander said of the Cunupia incident: “Yes, well I see some police had an exchange of gunfire with some men and they died…which is good, if they can’t behave themselves.”

The minister’s comment comes after the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) raised concerns in March about rising incidences of police-involved shootings compared to comparative figures for 2024.

Within the past 12 days, five people have died in police-involved shooting incidents. On September 21, police shot and killed soldier Shyien Trancoso and another man identified as Enrique Garcia in Sangre Grande. Officers allegedly found a high-powered assault rifle near the bodies.

On September 25, an Arima man was killed in a shootout with police near the SWAHA Hindu College on Cunapo Southern Main Road, Sangre Grande.

Then on October 2, Alvin Bharath and his son Avindra were shot dead by police in Cunupia.

On September 26, at a press conference to mark 100 days in charge of the TTPS, Commissioner of Police Allister Guevarro warned the criminal element against engaging his officers who he said are trained to defend themselves and with deadly force, if need be.

The operation in Cunupia, on October 2, was co-ordinated by head of the Anti-Extortion Unit, ACP Richard Smith, along with ACP Andy Tewarie and Sgt Bacchus.

When Newsday visited Cunupia hours after the shooting, residents said the man and his son were not originally from the neighbourhood and had only been seen in the area within recent weeks. The dead men are said to have been from Kelly Village.

Pastor Bickram Singh, of the Community Bible Church, expressed shock and concern over the incident saying the people involved in the shooting were related to a person who at one time rented a part of the church’s compound.

“The place was rented to a woman and her son. There was never any issues with them,” Singh said.

“Apart from the tenancy, we had no dealings with them. It is a separate space in the church’s compound. We are currently focusing on supporting our members. I am unclear on the full details, but I have someone looking into it.”

Speaking on crime in the country, the pastor noted a disturbing trend involving at-risk youths.

“We are seeing the age of those involved in crime getting younger and younger, and that is definitely a cause for concern,” he said.

“They are at risk because of peer pressure, social media and the fact that society is failing to do the job we should be doing as adults and parents. We are working as assiduously as we can at our church, but there is so much coming at us that we cannot take it all on at once.” –
Additional reporting by PAULA LINDO