BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – A taxi driver narrowly escaped with his life after he was ambushed by a number of armed assailants on Wednesday evening (Sept. 2).
The events of Kenrick Fyfield’s Wednesday were not outside of the ordinary, but took a turn for the unexpected in the evening after he discovered a part of his vehicle (TA202) was missing.
As he recounted in an exclusive interview with SKNVibes, early in the day he had taken tourists on a tour at Half Moon Villas. He later discovered that one of his hubcaps was missing while he was at a service station having his gas tank filled.
Fyfield, who is also the Treasurer of the St. Kitts Taxi Association, said it was approximately 8:00 in the evening when he returned to the Half Moon Villa area to look for the missing hubcap. Failing to find it, he entered his vehicle and, as he explained, locked the doors as he typically does.
“As soon as I did, I realized someone was pulling on the sliding door and I reached for my machete. I then realized he had a gun pointing at me. He was telling me ‘open d effin’ door’. When I realized he had a gun, I tried to start the vehicle and he said if I only start the ‘effin’ vehicle’, he gun shoot me.”
Fyfield further recounted that a number of other masked individuals then approached from the opposite side of the taxi and made similar demands, which he ignored.
“They were masked and they were all shouting at me to open the door. One broke the back window on the driver’s side of the vehicle with a machete, and then I heard ‘pop, pop, pop’ and windows shattering. That is when I sped off. All the windows on the right side of the vehicle are broken.”
The terrified taxi driver said he rushed to Basseterre, forgetting that there is a police outpost in the Frigate Bay area, and sought to make a report at Police Headquarters. The reaction of officers there, he explained, threw him for a loop.
He said when he attempted to make a report, he was told to journey back to Frigate Bay and speak with the officers at that outpost because the incident took place within their jurisdiction. He noted that he was escorted from Police Headquarters to the Frigate Bay Outpost where he eventually made the report.
Although suffering no major injuries from the incident, Fyfield then went to the Joseph N. France General Hospital to have pieces of glass removed from his shoulder. He said that he counts himself lucky.
“My first instinct was to get out of there because my life was in jeopardy. I was not fearful at first. The fear only hit me when I reached town. When I reached, that is when I realize I almost lost my life. I count myself lucky to be alive today.”
SKNVibes contacted the Public Relations Officer of the police force, Inspector Cromwell Henry, to follow up on investigations into the matter. He indicated that he is not aware of the situation, but would make further inquiry.
Fyfield said that he continues to count his blessings and offered one small piece of advice to motorists around the Federation: “always try and keep your vehicle locked”.
