Police are investigating the brazen murder of attorney-at-law Randall Warren Hector, 43, who was fatally shot last night after leaving the Stanmore Avenue Seventh-day Adventist Church.
Police say that while walking to his car at the intersection of Stanmore Avenue and Albion Street in Port of Spain, two vehicles—a black SUV and a B15 sedan—approached him, and multiple gunshots were heard.
Hector was shot in the chest and was transported by a church deacon to the Port of Spain General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The shooting occurred about two hours after Police Commissioner Erla Harewood Christopher held a news conference, during which she "guaranteed" results from the State of Emergency.
Hector was an attorney for the Strategic Services Agency and was said to be a prosecutor in a case against a known gang leader.
Shortly after the murder, a video of Hector's sermon in church, taken just minutes before the shooting, began circulating.
He addressed the State of Emergency directly, saying that 2024 had been a bloody year but he looked forward to a better 2025.
"Regardless of what is happening out there, God has protected us," Hector said.
The congregation reacted in agreement.
"God has sustained us, and we are here to say, 'God, we are with you now, and forevermore,'" Hector said as he ended his address.
His friends, family, and members of the public condemned the murder on social media, many noting how brazen and callous criminals have become, lying in wait for a prosecutor outside a church.
Hectir’s murder would likely have been the last for 2024, which was on track to see a record high of 624 murders in the country.
