"Don't point that at me!" Those were the frantic words of Rennie Beharry before his friend shot him dead for refusing to dispose of a corpse after Beharry stumbled upon a murder scene in Pleasantville on Thursday night. Beharry, 29, of Pleasantville Terrace, awoke to the sound of gunshots and saw the killer standing over the corpse of Kwasi Marcus Preddie, 25, of Pharoah Street, Ste Madeleine. Investigators said Preddie and five other men were playing a game of cards at Born Free Recreation Club, which is owned by Beharry's father Evans.
The bar, located at Pleasantville Terrace, was closed at the time, but an adjoining gambling room, which was rented out, was in operation. Witnesses told police that during the card game, at around 5.10 am, Preddie had an argument with the killer, who pulled out a gun and shot him twice at point-blank range. The other players fled as Preddie fell to the ground dead. Beharry, who was asleep inside his home located to the back of the bar, woke up at the sound of the gunshots and ran outside to investigate. He saw the gunman, who he grew up with, standing over Preddie's corpse. Beharry's father said he heard the conversation before the second murder was committed.
"The man told my son to start his car and to move (Preddie's) body. My son told him he wanted no part of that. Then I heard my son saying 'don't point that at me.' I heard three gunshots and when I ran out I see my son lying on the ground bleeding," Evans recalled. The gunman fled the scene. Beharry was taken to San Fernando General Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Wiping away tears, Evans said he was always careful not to allow his children in the gambling arena.
He said: "That was why I separated the bar from the gambling room. The bar has been existence for over 35 years. It was owned by my parents and I took it over seven years ago." Evans said Beharry was a hard-working man who assisted in the household. Beharry's wife, Crystal Serrette, and his mother, Lynette Beharry, were inconsolable yesterday. Serette and Beharry have three children–Josiah, 13, Rendell, aged three and Renaldo, aged five. Meanwhile, Preddie's mother Marilyn said God would deal with the killer. She said her son was a hardworking man who loved to party. "As a mother it hurting me, but I putting everything in the hands of God," Marilyn wept.