The murder of former police officer Arkim Baker at a bar in Curepe during the early hours yesterday, has left a bitter taste in the mouth of his colleagues and regulars who knew him.
Baker, 39, died after being shot in the chest by a masked gunman as he stood behind the bar, attending to customers.
Police said the brazen shooting took place around 2 am inside Bobby’s Bar, Southern Main Road.
The gunman, it was believed, had been outside the popular establishment, waiting on an opportune moment.
As Baker, a father of four, ran towards the storage room where he collapsed and later died, the masked gunman allegedly ran out of the bar and got into a waiting car which had been parked in the vicinity of the defunct Bomb Newspaper office.
Yesterday’s murder occurred less than four months after bandits opened fire on Baker’s champagne coloured Mercedes Benz Kompressor, as he drove to his Quarry Road, San Juan home.
In the incident on November 28, 2024—three men allegedly confronted Baker when he slowed to manoeuvre a speed bump in the vicinity of Georges Terrace along Quarry Road.
People close to Baker yesterday lamented, “He was marked, they came for him.”
Bar owner Bobby Manbodh confirmed Baker had been employed as the manager for the past ten years.
He described the former officer, who was last assigned to the Inter-Agency Task Force as, “One of the most decent, trustworthy and honest persons I have ever met in my life.”
Manbodh claimed although “he was a workaholic,” he always had a smile on his face.
“He was one of the most personable persons I knew,” he added.
He dismissed negative social media comments about Baker.
Baker had been employed with the T&T Police Service for 17 years.
Two spent shell casings were collected at the scene of yesterday’s murder.
Despite the murder, Bobby’s Bar opened for business as usual yesterday.
