Woman, man shot dead during police operation
By Oscar P. Clarke
Stabroek News
November 6, 2002

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A woman and a man died from gunshot wounds last night during a police operation at Lot 17/17 Wortmanville Housing Scheme.

The dead persons have been identified as 54-year-old Dorothy Williams of 413 East Ruimveldt and Adrian Greene, said to be around 27 years of age. Greene was one of twelve men named in a police wanted bulletin yesterday afternoon.

Williams is believed to have been caught in the crossfire while standing at the entrance to the 17/17 Wortmanville Housing Scheme entrance on D'Urban awaiting transportation. Her daughter, Kathleen Holder, told Stabroek News last night that Williams had gone to the flats to visit a relative.

Sources say police had been trailing a car carrying Greene and another man.

Reports say that the motor car, HA 9509 had been trailed to the D'Urban Street, Wortmanville Lot where the suspects abandoned the vehicle and fled.

Several burst of gunfire then erupted at around 8.45 p.m. sending persons in the neighbourhood scampering in all directions for cover. It is believed that Greene was hit during this encounter.

Police took up strategic positions around the flats, blocking off movement along the D'Urban Street carriageway between Haley Street and Vlissengen Road as they combed the area in the hope of locating the suspects.

A man believed to be the driver of the car, a Grey Toyota Marino, was forced to lie flat on the ground and was later placed in a police vehicle as they continued their operations.

As time passed and a large crowd converged on the scene, police battled to keep them away from the scene as they continued to search the yard for other suspects and retrieved spent shells.

Even as police forensics personnel undertook their task of gathering evidence from the scene a single shot resounded at around 10.20 p.m. sending curious onlookers dashing for cover. Shortly afterwards police were seen emerging from the yard carrying Greene's body, which they loaded into their vehicle before hurriedly departing. Greene was said to have sustained around five gunshot wounds. It is unclear for which cases he had been sought by the police. A tearful and pregnant Holder who arrived on the scene approximately an hour and a half later, said that she had seen her mother earlier in the night. Later, she had gotten a call informing her about the shooting.

These two shootings followed a series of others over the last eight days. On Monday, six men were shot dead while on the previous Monday seven others were killed in shoot-outs.