Schoolgirl shot by friend’s boyfriend playing with illegal gun
The gun and ammo found hidden in the suspect’s backyard
A 21-year-old male resident of Norton Street, Georgetown has been arrested following a shooting incident involving a 14-year-old schoolgirl on Friday at Norton Street, Georgetown.
The Police have said that at about 14:40h on Monday, a doctor attached to the Kitty Health Centre reported to the Police that a 14-year-old female was being treated for a suspected gunshot wound to her left thumb. As a result, ranks dispatched to the health centre interviewed the teenager — from Kuru Kururu on the Soesdyke/Linden Highway — who at the time was accompanied by another teenager and a 21-year-old man from Norton Street, Werk-en-Rust, Georgetown.
The injured teenager related that on Saturday, at about 23:00h, she was in the company of her teenage friend, who resides with her boyfriend at Norton Street, and the boyfriend was at the time playing with a firearm.
The teen recalled hearing a loud explosion which sounded like a gunshot, after which she felt a burning sensation to her left thumb, which subsequently started to bleed.
The teenager told the Police that after the incident, the 21-year-old suspect went to the backyard and hid the firearm among some concrete blocks. She, her teenage friend, and the suspect then travelled to the Kitty Health Centre to seek medical attention.
Based on the information provided, the young man was arrested and taken to his home, where the firearm was retrieved. The .32 pistol, which does not have a serial number, and one live round of ammunition were found wrapped in a black plastic bag concealed among some hollow blocks.
The young man was asked whether he is the holder of a firearm licence, but he responded in the negative. He then told ranks that the gun was given to him by a friend, and he provided that friend’s name to the detectives.
He was later taken to the East La Penitence Police Station, where he remains in custody. The firearm was sent for ballistic testing, to determine if it had been used in the commission of any crime.
