Murder in Gungulung: A Marijuana Merchant is Shot & Killed
Darrel Alvarez
A weed seller who migrated from Supal Street to Gungulung was executed on Monday night by someone familiar to him. It is believed that the murder of Darrel Alvarez was the result of an altercation earlier in the day over monies owed to him for the sale of marijuana. When he stepped out of his house to go and full two buckets of water, he was met by someone who was calling him at the front gate. A short while later, gunshots would ring out near the community pipe. News Five’s Isani Cayetano reports.
Isani Cayetano, Reporting
When thirty-five-year-old Darrel Alvarez changed his mind and decided to fetch water from the public faucet a few houses down from where he lived in the CET Site area of Gungulung, he did not foresee his demise. Neither did his siblings…
Kimberly Alvarez
Kimberly Alvarez, Sister of Deceased
“He deh eena di house with ih daughter, gwein goh full two bucket ah wata, so he come out. When he come out, wahn young bwai holla fi ahn. That da how he change ih direction weh paat ih go, cause he usually full wata cross ah my sista, and that da when dehn holla fi ahn and tell ahn di certain person deh da di lane di hail ahn. That da when ih walk gaan and seh ih gwein go full wata da di lane.”
Prior to drawing water from the stand, Alvarez met up with someone. That individual, according to his sister, owed him money for a consignment of marijuana. Selling weed was Alvarez’s livelihood.
Kimberly Alvarez
“He da noh wahn person weh work or fi seh, well every fifteenth he got wahn paycheck fi come een. So fi he pay, fi he maintain fi he pickney, he sell weed. So when he sell weed, he got friends weh wahn cohn buy wahn half ounce and den deh and dehn pay he di money when dehn mek fi dehn profit dehn wahn pay he weh he tell dehn fi pay and di profit da fi dehn. Soh dehn got dis young man, he get di weed, sell di weed, noh wahn pay di money. When ih noh wahn pay di money, my bredda gaan afta ahn because di time done pass fi ih pay di weed. Soh my bredda gaan afta ahn afta three [o’clock] and ask ahn, “yoh time done pass fi pay di weed money, bring di money.”
That demand reportedly ended with an exchange of words between Alvarez and the unidentified individual during which threats were leveled. When he was informed that the same person was at this open lot a short distance away from the pipe, Alvarez may have presumed that the debt would have been paid. Much to the contrary…
Kimberly Alvarez
“Three persons mi done di deh through the alley by da big field di wait fi ahn. Well when he reach deh, fi he defense da wahn stick. So dehn mi have wahn lee hard talk, but ih look like when he turn ih back fi put ahn di pipe, that da when dehn get di upper hand and just shot ahn. I noh know, eena ih back, eena ih head weh paat dehn shot ahn. I think da three shot dehn shot ahn.”
The incident, Kimberly Alvarez insists, was not provoked by gang activity.
Kimberly Alvarez
“Dehn da friend. Everyday dehn cohn buy weed. Every day dehn in contact. This noh got nothing fi do with no gang, nothing. Just one fool weh get my bredda weed and noh wahn pay di money and think that fi he noh pay di money he could tek my bredda life. That da weh I got fi tell he, he is a fool because everyday you pass, you call my ma. Evening mami, and you have the heart fi pull di trigger pan that same lady weh every day you bid di time ah di day to, you pull di trigger pan my bredda.”
Isani Cayetano For News Five
