British national Adrian St John was shot dead on Sunday night after he was robbed by two armed bandits in Mt D’Or.
According to police, around 8.30 pm, 22-year-old St John was driving a Nissan AD wagon along Mt D’Or Road when he stopped to pick up the daughter of his 50-year-old female passenger.
As the woman entered the vehicle two men approached and held up St John. After robbing him the men ordered him to drive off. As he was doing so, one of the gunmen on the roadside fired, hitting the aspiring cricketer in the head, police said.
One of the women steered the vehicle to the Eastern Main Road and then stopped a passing police vehicle who transported St John to the nearby Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, where he died shortly after. Yesterday, a 24-year-old suspect was held at Mount Hope for the murder.
Speaking with the media at the Forensic Science Centre, St James, yesterday, St John’s cousin, Leandra Alexander, said St John came to T&T for Carnival and enjoyed his visit so much he wanted to stay in the country.
She said after relatives begged his reluctant father, St John was allowed to remain in the country a bit longer and was scheduled to return to the UK next Tuesday. She said St John lived in La Brea with relatives.
“Adrian was very cool and jolly. He was a darling. He was never rude, never disrespectful, he was just a cool and quiet child,” Alexander said.
Other relatives said St John was born in England, spent the first seven years in T&T, and was a cricketer in England. They added that St John was already taking steps to become a citizen of this country in pursuit of his plans to play one day for the West Indies.
Attempts to reach the British High Commission yesterday were unsuccessful.
So far this year, 135 people have been murdered, 30 more than for the same period last year.