Advertisement 87
Advertisement 323
Advertisement 219

The suspected burglar who died after being shot by police on Tuesday, was shot less than a year after being brought before the court on a number of burglary charges, which were still pending.

The man, Leon “Buyaka” Samuel of New Montrose, was shot inside a house at Cane Garden belonging to the brother of a woman whose store he was charged with burglarising last year.

Also arrested at the house on Tuesday was George Kirk Williams, a Sion Hill resident, who was jointly charged with Samuel and two others in connection with last year’s burglaries.

Sources tell iWitness News that police, responding to a report of a burglary sometime before 4 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, met Williams outside a house in the East Kingstown community.

Police drew their weapons and ordered Williams to comply with their instruction, which he did, a well-placed source has told iWitness News.

Advertisement 21

Samuel is said to have disobeyed the police officers’ orders to exit the house.

When the lawmen entered the house, they met Samuel, who came at them in a threatening way with an implement of burglary, and police discharged their firearm, hitting him in the chest, a well-placed source told iWitness News.

He was taken to the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital, where he died.

IMG 3178
A trail of blood inside the home where the shooting took place.

Samuel and Williams were among four men, the others being Recardo Bacchus and Allan Wilson, who were charged with a varying number of counts of burglary last October.

Bacchus admitted to stealing EC$28,467 and US$1,450 in cash plus more than EC$30,000 in goods from two businesses in Kingstown last year and was, on June 19, 2017, jailed for three years.

The court ordered that the seven months he had already spent in custody be discounted from the sentence.

He had initially pleaded guilty to three counts of burglary when he appeared before Magistrate Bertie Pompey at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court on Nov. 23, 2016, but his sentencing was deferred.

Bacchus was jointly charged with two counts of burglary along with Samuel, and Kirk Williams.

Wilson joined the three co-accused, charged with one count of burglary.

Bacchus, Williams, and Samuel were charged that on Oct. 14, 2016 at Kingstown, they entered the Fred. J. Dare and Co. Ltd. store as trespassers and stole EC$23,267 and US$1,450 in cash, the property of Mona Dare of Cane Garden.

Bacchus pleaded guilty to the charge while his co-accused pleaded not guilty when they appeared at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court on Nov. 23, 2016.

Cane Garden shooting 1The trio were further charged that between Oct. 26 and 28, 2016, at Middle Street, Kingstown, they entered the Fred. J. Dare and Co. Ltd store as trespassers and stole a number of items and EC$5,200 in cash, a total value of EC$27,886.

The men also pleaded the same way for this charge, when they appeared in court, on Nov. 23, 2016.

The stolen items included men and women’s underwear, tablet computers, boom boxes, and travel bags.

All four men were further charged that between Nov. 10 and 11, 2016, at Kingstown, they entered the Majestic Express building as trespassers and stole a number of items and EC$4,800 in cash, total value of EC$7,095.

The items stolen included clothing, jewellery, flash cards, a Bluetooth headphone and a Samsung Galaxy smartphone.

When they appeared in court on Nov. 22, 2016, Bacchus pleaded guilty while his co-accused pleaded not guilty.

Sentencing in the matter was deferred until June.

The court heard that the crimes were committed after the owners of the stores had secured the business places, and, in the case of Fred J. Dare, the burglars entered via the roof.

The court heard that of all the items stolen, only a bottle of cologne, and a pair of jeans that Bacchus was wearing when he was arrested were recovered.

The other accused men, who had secured bail, were scheduled to return to court last month but the hearing was adjourned.