'I don’t understand how our community has stayed so quiet'- CoP Matthews
“I have said this before, but I never miss the opportunity of mentioning this, because it is one moment in my policing career here in the BVI that is still sitting with me like it was yesterday. I just want to take listeners to the 22nd of November 2017, and that was when we had a double homicide in the West End of Tortola, and one of the victims of the homicide was an 11-year-old schoolgirl, Trinity Moses,” he remarked during an interview on My BVI Radio Show on Tuesday February 16, 2021.
“I never forget that we haven’t captured that killer and whilst we captured many other people since and charged them with the most serious of offences and got them locked up awaiting trials and so forth and even in the most recent cases, we are very confident that we will end up arresting and charging people; every now and again there is a shocking moment in history. And when I look at that moment back in time in 2017, and that little girl was lying asleep in the back of the car when an automatic weapon was fired into that vehicle by somebody on a scooter, and I don’t understand how our community has stayed so quiet about that.”
A reward of $100,000 was offered in 2018 and is still available for information leading to the identification and charge of those responsible for the murders of Penn and Moses.
Police can’t do it alone
The Commissioner of Police then expressed that the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force is unable to solve crimes on their own.
“If you are really being truthful to yourselves we gotta do it together. We can’t continue on this road of people saying I am not prepared to come forward; I am not prepared to say anything because there are ways that information can be given to the force without identifying who’s giving it to them and not every officer in the force is corrupt despite what the media will make of recent events here. So my message will remain very, very clear, we cannot do it alone, this has to be in partnership with the community. It is time for the community to stand up and say this is not good enough. It is time for the community to say we don’t want guns on the streets, we don’t want guns in the homes, and it is time for the community to declare outrage.”
He said the understandable ‘fear’ of speaking out should also be another reason to be angry as a community.
He added: “When I think back to that night when that little girl died I didn’t see large groups of the community protesting at the Road Town Police Station about the death of an 11-year-old schoolgirl here. Nothing happened.”
On that night, Trinity Moses was in the car along with her mother Ramona Moses, who was the sole survivor of the brutal attack.
Police had reported that the vehicle the victims were in was on the West End public road in the area of the graveyard around 9:30 PM when at least two scooter riders rode up to it and fired indiscriminately.
Meanwhile, anyone with information relating to these crimes are urged to contact Detective Inspector Vernon Larocque; directly on 368-9809 or via the Major Crime Investigation Team on 368-5682. Police said all information would be treated with the strictest confidence.
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33 Responses to “'I don’t understand how our community has stayed so quiet'- CoP Matthews”
This is very, very sad indeed.
Maybe no one have an idea who did it.
I really believe is mistaken identity or maybe the man who died had an issue with someone unknown to his family and friends.
Also heard there was a scene out of the movies in West End the other day where the Police stopped a young man on a bike and when he jumped off a gun fell out of his waist right in front of the Police. Immediately after that happened another biker snatched him up from in front of them and rode off. They probably just laughed at the shock of it. Doubt they reported it. Nobody I have seen wear masks while on their bikes. They are bare faced and bold so they know who they are. No wonder the young men are so bold and using the weapons anywhere and anyhow they like. They can see the Police in this jurisdiction are just nice men and women in uniform. They do not know their duties are. TO SOLVE CRIME. So COP, please check your officers. People give tips but they fall on deaf ears.
LET THE POLICE GO AND DO THEIR JOB. ALWAYS QUICK TO SAY POLICE CAN'T DO IT BY THEMSELVES. SH** THEY COMMIT CRIMES BY THEMSELVES.
SECRET it is living up to its name
Sooner we turn around and think people that protect innocents and "snitch" on the bad guys are heros the better. Protecting drug runners and murderers by not calling these hotlines makes you accessories to what is going on in the VI. Maybe it is time for a COI.
Lying
Harassment
Importing dope
Selling dope
Wrecking government cars...
They so incompetent they couldn't even find a hooker in a whore house.