BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – IAN ‘ROOKIE’ PHIPPS, on behalf of the organisers of the recently concluded Party Central, is apologising to patrons, “especially the women and children”, for the criminal behaviour exhibited by certain elements on Sunday morning (Jan. 3).
The Party, which was held simultaneously with the 2009/2010 National Carnival celebrations on Central Street between New and Fort Streets, ended early Sunday morning (Jan. 3) just after the Last Lap celebration with the shooting of one man in the arm and injuries to two others.
The shooting victim, Kimbal Bennett of Willet’s Project, St. Paul’s Village, was taken to the Joseph N France General Hospital, where this media house learnt that the bullet had passed through his arm without any bone damage and he was treated and subsequently discharged.
And while Deshawn Leader of St. Paul’s Village escaped the fracas with a wound to his left hand, Levi Smith Jnr. of Cayon Village was not so fortunate. Reports were that he was badly beaten, stabbed in the back and his face was swollen beyond recognition.
Additional reports stated that Smith was hospitalised and sometime after discharged, while one man from St. Paul’s Village was apprehended and had been assisting police with their investigations. He was however released without any charges brought against him.
Investigations conducted by this media house revealed that the fight broke out between a group of young men from St. Paul’s Village and another young man from Newtown, and not Cayon Village as previously stated.
It is understood that the fight started elsewhere and the man from Newtown was being chased by the group from St. Paul’s.
“The man from Newtown ran across Fort Street in the direction where Levi and his girlfriend were standing. They were standing on the northern side of Central Street in front of a small building where Rookie was selling his drinks. A lot of bottles were thrown and Levi fell to the ground as the men were fighting and, unfortunately, he was badly beaten and stabbed in the back. I don’t know if they mistook him for an accomplice of the man from Newtown, but what I know is that he and some other men from Cayon were there because they were followers of Chalice Sound, which comes from Cayon. Cayon people was not involved in the altercation…it is only Levi who suffered innocently,” said an individual on condition of anonymity.
It is for this reason Phipps of Rookie Entertainment decided to visit SKNVibes to make a public apology.
“We the organisers of Party Central would like to apologise to all those who had supported our nightly event, especially the women and children who were present during the altercation. Our hearts go out to all who were injured and also those who were traumatised.
“Party Central was launched on the same day the Carnival celebrations began and our nightly activities were incident-free until that eventful early morning just after Last Lap ended. There was always police presence since December 18, but I believe their absence was due to the Police Force’s tight schedule during Last Lap. However, officers arrived quickly on the scene and took control of the situation.
“It is therefore from this perspective that I have taken the opportunity, on behalf of myself and the other organisers, to apologise to our patrons for that most unfortunate incident that marred the last of our nightly event. We would however like to assure the general public that there will not be a reoccurrence, as we plan to make it an annual event, and more safety measures will be in place.”
Party Central was a nightly musical entertainment activity promoted by Rookie Entertainment in collaboration with Watch No Face and BCA, and sponsored by Digicel, Carib Brewery, Island Xpressions, SL Horsfords, Vivid Designs and Kittitian Flava. Patrons were entertained by the Nu Vybes, Grand Masters and Small Axe Bands as well as Chalice Sound.
According to Phipps, the aim of Party Central was to enhance Carnival by bringing together people from all walks of life into an atmosphere of unity, free from criminal activities while enjoying the harmonious music of home-grown bands and artistes.
“Despite the unanticipated incident, the turnout was excellent and I would like to reiterate that security measures will be in place for future events with additional local flavours,” Phipps added.
