A 21-year-old male was found dead lying in the street in East End early Thursday morning, the fifth shooting death in Grand Cayman in the past nine days.
Police officers performing routine patrols discovered the body of Asher McGaw on John McLean Drive in East End at about 3am, according to authorities. Officers said McGaw had suffered “more than one” gunshot wound and was lying motionless when they came upon him. Authorities checked for vital signs, but there were none. An ambulance was called to the scene and the victim was pronounced dead.
Police would not say if there were any witnesses to the shooting.
Police are seeking the public’s assistance. Persons with information are urged to call the Bodden Town Police Station at 947-2220 or Crime Stoppers at 800-8477.
RCIPS on the scene in East End
Jewel Levy
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Witnesses to the shooting? Is it not quite likely then that the answer is ‘no’. As the body was discovered by officers on a routine patrol, rather than being called to a particular incident.
At least the answer is ‘no – to witnesses who fancy telling police what they saw’.
Gangwarfare? Maybe. But maybe we have a Charles Bronson on the island doing the job the Police should be doing.
Nice how all the robberies atleast stop this week.
For the young kids out there Charles Bronson made these Death Wish in 1974 and countless sequels where he becomes a one-man vigilante squad after his wife is murdered by street punks in which he randomly goes out and kills would-be muggers on the mean streets after dark.
Baines stop trying to fool us into believing that the RCIP are now keeping gangs apart. You simply are NOT!
You know where these gangsters are are eventhough you have all the arsenal available to scoop hem up with and hold them while a law is passed to make it legal to be in a gang! Your system is failing and its time you admi
YOU CAN NOT HANDLE THIS AND YOU NEED A SUPERIOR TO HELP YOU CLEAN UP THIS MESS. Governor Duncan you are acting very lax in epecting Caymanians o feel comforale and safe with his man in charge of RCIP, the police are obviously fed up with having o follow womeone who simply does not have he experience to lead hem to victory in curbing hese high level crimes in he Cayman Islands. Gov. Duncan please stop this madness and get a qualified police to lead our RCIP.
Alden, Tony, Arden, Kurt and Ezzard is ime o lead a delegation o the UK and force he hand of he FCO office or meet with Parliament to inercept this gun batle in our counry. Cayman is now a war zone and our little RCIP led by a soft little Bo Peep leadership CAN NOT HANDLE THE JOB.
Police want to strike these bastards but its the sof leadership in their way obviously it is.
Baines forget the big pay, think about the people who are losing their loved ones. Resign and give up the job to someone qualified in curbing High Crime.
Get Real!
If nothing changes and the war continues, then we assume that the UK has put the necessary top officials in place in Cayman to ensure its destruction and impose direct rule. Will we stand up to them.
These are posts on Trip advisor I read this morning, It says a lot for Caymans Rep. Need I say more It’s a shame that a handful of young thugs were allowed to ruin the reputation of a nation. I wonder if the people in charge of protecting the public can sleep at night knowing the island sank on their watch. Funny how it all happened so fast after the people forced the folks out that were doing the job right.
Mami R
Key West…
posts: 3
Avoid travel to the Cayman Islands for your own safely
Sep 22, 2011, 9:51 AM
The island is overrun with Gang activity and the local police have no way of protecting the public. Just in the last two weeks there have been at least 5 Shooting Murders. There has also recently been several armed robberies one of which an elderly women shot and multiple Carjackings. Unfortunately the police force on this small island is not equipped to deal with the escalating violence. If you must go there avoid walking outside after dark, there have been quite few attacks on tourists. Be safe and explore other options in the Caribbean such as ****** where crime is practically non existent.
love2travel2
Copenhagen…
posts: 1,387
reviews: 55
Am I wrong to get worried?
Sep 10, 2011, 2:00 PM
I am sorry, but I am starting to get worried. it seems to me that someone gets robbed almost every day, and for a society with only 60k People that seems a lot – also considering statistics and all.
We really want to feel safe driving around the Island snorkeling at remote beaches, and visiting off the beaten path places, but I must admit I am starting to get worried. Only this last week it seems there have been a robbery a day, it is not big an Island, how many criminals Can there be?
I dont want to stir anything up, and sorry if I do, but the fact we could feel safe driving around, was one of the main reasons we chose GC.
@ NJ2Cay – That is because some of those bloggers have only one agenda in mind. During this crime wave, they are eager to ensure Caymans reputation is ruin. Caymans relies on its tourism industry. Hence, the exaggerations of Cayman like this and Cayman like that. That want nothing good for Cayman, because they see Cayman as a tax evasion place. I even see the repeated tourist comments here, about my wife and I, et cetera… No doubt, Cayman crime has gone wild, but you need to see through some of those comments you see posted on other sites.
It is unfortunate that this has occurred in such a tight-knit and loving community as is East End. My condolences go out to the entire EE community. The shooter will be caught and justice will prevail. Unfortunately, I believe this act could have been avoided if an intervention would have occurred. It’s blatantly obvious as to who the troubled youth are as you drive through EE. It is high time that we identify troubled youths and intervene hastily.
Obviously, millions of dollars is given to the Police instead of to Customs and Immigration to protect our borders. We have no radar to stop canoes from coming in at sea. I understand Immigration enforcement staff is less than 20 people for the entire three islands. I understand Customs are lacking boats and manpower. What the hell is going on with the Commissioner in asking for more officers and cash from tax-payers money. The British head is really doing a bad job at controlling crime on this island. I think we need someone local and knows the streets of Cayman. We need someone who also know a bit about the sea – some marine experience.
The Shooter is an Hired professional send by the Drug Wholesaler or cartel to clean up these low level crooks who are robbing restaurants and liquor stores. See all the extra crime and attention of the police are hurting his drug sales and business is business.
No way this shooter is local. 5 Dead all shot in the head, previously these crooks could not hit anything they shot at!!!
I watched the Governor and comm of Police on TV his morning. It was pathetic I was very disappointed.
I can’ t believe hat the Governor and Comm of police is in defiance and contempt of the wishes of the people of the Cayman Islands. Yes they are actually bringing more UK police here to vacation on our beaches. No one knows them and definitely will not give information to strangers. The UK system is useless and ineffective. Bring back our local police, Pepsi, Butch, Haines, all of them.
I am very disappointed that the governor is only interested in giving UK police a job here in the tropical than they are in hiring real US crime fighters that are more effective. More UK police is a JOKE, a real Joke!
They’re not serious.
Apprentice, you may be right but the fact still remains that they actually are not exaggerating. Can you say Cayman is the safe haven it used to be? I myself am actually getting tired of having to defend the Cayman Islands when these people have facts to back up their stories. It seems to me that people need to stop worrying about things like Darts developments and making immigration changes to attract people to Cayman as start focusing on making the Island safe again that’s what will attract tourists and bring money to the Island.
What a telegraph punch the police threw, I could see it coming a mile away.. We may have been able to catch those guns at spots if we had put up the block before started to drag the net.. Operations, your action is like scatter corn..
I am saddened to see that almost every string of comments on every story these days seems to turn into a fight about Caymanians verus Ex-pats. However the newspaper does its best to ignore these issues in its reporting. I don’t even know the nationalities of the 5 men killed recently. Does anyone know if they are all born Caymanian?
Our RCIP has its work cut out for them as crime surges erupt the unrest in communities of he Cayman Islands. The Governor and Commissioner of Police have come up short’ in their briefing the people of he Cayman Islands as seen on TV just hours ago. Putting a bandaid on the open wound of criminal activity must be treated with an advanced technology efforts to ban the importation of firearms and drugs which go hand in hand.
Clearly our boarders are not protected by land, sea or air and its time to implement safety measures and combative efforts to protect our society from the venom of this pithon of gang activiy that has wrapped itself around the youth of Cayman.
Almost every other day, we witness helplessly as one young life is taken by gun assisted violence. This is a pointless waste of future potential. Those concerned have no concept that they have cut their own nose off despite their face This gang war has contributed to the destruction of the entire country by damaging our tourism industry. Such power wielded by a few weak minded, weak willed, self interested individuals has been given to them by their parents, their immediate community and, I feel, a lack of unbiased national law enforcement. If this is a turf war regarding drugs, then anyone who ‘uses’ is also responsible.
Last year the International Travel division of the US Bureau of Consular Services web site warned travelers in US about gang violence on Cayman and cited the Hell gas station shooting. I can only imagine what the warning will look like after this year’s recent events.
A vigilante??? I seriously doubt it! We have young people under the influence of alcohol, ganja, and crack who think it’s ok to solve a problem by shooting or stabbing someone they dislike or disagree with. They are walking around angry at the world and they seem to snap at the smallest issue because they can’t control themselves when they are under the influence of a foreign substance. Drug test all of the deceased and I guarantee you, they were all under the influence of one or all substances listed above. Drug test all of the gang members brought in for questioning and I am sure they have drugs in their system too! Now tell me, what’s the problem? When you are not in your right mind, then you will end up making a stupid decision!!!!! They have no regard for the wonderful gift God gave them…the gift of life!!
Why haven’t the police placed surveillance cameras in areas that are known drug trafficking areas?? Here’s a clue in case they don’t know: In EE, you should have some surveillance between Pirate’s Cove and EE cemetary (look for the kids that sit on the cemetary wall or stand nearly in the street). On John McClean drive, cameras should be in the area of Robson’s shop!! At least the use of cameras may deter drug trafficking, which I believe is the root of all of this mindless killing. If not, then you will have video of those individuals that choose to carelessly break the law!
What is better? not releasing name of suspects so there are more proofs for conviction and expecting more murders or releasing name of suspects so the population has grounds to protect themself and also taking a chance of non conviction.
Does anybody notice a reoccurring theme in all of these attacks? None of them are being committed by expats; they are all local gang related crimes against other local gang members. The government needs to take a deeper look at the root of the problem and get control of the reasons why these individuals are committing violent crimes, when two years ago Cayman was a completely different and safer place. The first step is getting better trained and competent police officers to handle the problems. Also, criminals need to know there are repercussions to their actions. Right now, the criminals know there is nothing being done so there is no incentive for them to think twice before doing a criminal act.
Once the problems with the crimes are controlled, the next step is creating the infrastructure to attract tourists to come back to the island which will in turn create more jobs, less poverty, and less crime as local individuals will have a means to support their families. A new cruise dock would certainly do that by allowing more boats into GC, for longer periods of time and putting more tourists in town, spending money and giving a boost to the economy! It’s not brain surgery, just simple economicsIf you build it, they will come. I love the island and hope to live their full time one,
day, but things need some serious changes NOW!
These killings are sad news for Cayman. To see the news being sent around the world that there are murders in Cayman every other day is embarrasing to us as a people.
While working in Cayman many years ago I encouraged my friends in the ministry of Youth to spend more time on the 8-14 year old children of the day. There we would teach them the importance of our Caymanian way of life and what it meant to us as a people.
Of course I was told that the older teenagers could not be neglected and that was fair, but as someone who was working with them, many of the teenagers were already in the system and I was confident that if we started a new cycle that at this stage we would be the better for it.
The truth is when we fail to plan, we plan to fail. Every Caymanian has seen this coming, but we have lived in denial. I remember back in 2005 when the then government blamed all the crime on Jamaicans. As the former prison Chaplain I exclaimed that was not true and that if we were going to blame others we needed facts.
The facts can be found in Northward. What are the facts. There were very few Jamaicans or even foreigners there for locally committed crimes other than the importation of drugs. The prison was filled with Caymanians and mostly young men who had been through the system. We have allowed the gang and drug culture to progress over the years. Our continued denial of the truth has taken us to where we are today. Yes I do remember how the government blamed the Jamaicans and the so called 1500 overstayers in Cayman in 2005 for all the crime and then followed with the imposition of a visa for Jamaicans entering the island.
Change must come now or else we will lose our way of life. The economic downturn will affect us, but nothing will damage us more than this crime which is taking place. The Governor and Commissioner along with the government must make this priority one. We must solve this Crime problem and solve it now. However, we must face the facts about our true problems. The many youth having children, the growing unemployment for Caymanians, the dysfunctional families, the many young people who use drugs and are being imprisoned for its use, and the inability of our leaders to show up as true role models for our youth.
Finally, it seems to me that people are aware of who is next on the hit list of these killers. I sure hope that someone will care enough to speak up so that this rubbish can come to an end. Cayman is a wonderful place and has been a paradise for many. Let us remain that way today and for the future by rescuing this little rock today from the giant of drugs and crime.
Well if it is a Vigilante or Cartel member doing this to clean up the streets. It seems they are doing a better job than the cops. As far as the so called innocent young lives being lost. There’s a saying that goes if you live by the sword then you die by the sword. If these guys are running around acting like little gun toting gangsters and terrorizing law abiding people then they got what they deserved. And yes I would feel the same way if it were my child.
Let’s not argue over who is doing the job of clean up! Looks like the job is getting done and that’s all that matters. I guess if it becomes last man standing and the Police get him…He will likely get off with a Judge only trial and maybe he does deserve to get away with it.
Perhaps people’s prayers are been answered and we just don’t realize it yet. Cayman has no death penalty but God works in mysterious ways and you can’t say with 100% certainty that this is NOT divine intervention!
No I am not religious but if I find evidence that this was the work of the man upstairs I think perhaps a trip to church would be good for me….I guess they (the congregation) might not let me in though because they would argue God would never use his power for such a cleansing!
God Bless and long live the clean up committee. Oh….if it is the gangs themselves you might want to pack it in before there is none of you left or you could keep going and the last man standing could always turn himself in.
There should be undercover officers embedded in these gangs so a mountain of evidence can be built upon the gang members. Prosecute them all and don’t let them see the light of day ever again!
So what happens when the undercover gets murdered? Think…!!!
I am sick of this nonsense. THESE ARE NOT GANG SHOOTINGS. Your reporting of this is not helping – in fact, the young wannabe thugs now than more than ever want to be in gangs.
These shootings are Caymanian on Caymanian. Drug dealers on drug dealers. NOTHING MORE.
STOP blaming Jamaican Gangs.
You are doing nothing more than making the citizens and visitors to these islands fearful.
**** JUST HEARD FROM THE GRAPEVINE OF SHOOT-OUT IN BODDEN TOWN ****
You people are just not PRAYING hard enough!
Perhaps mandatory sterilisation is necessary to prevent breeding further batches of low lifes such as these.
I am sorry but cops are useless, they have these ankle bracers that can track people and keep the in house arrest , but they don’t use them! All they need to do is slap them down for something petty and use this as an excuse to keep a track on them, simple as!
It has been said before and I will say it again, there is nothing more dangerous than churning out uneducated young men leaving school with nothing to do. Not entering into skilled training or challenging employment or any employment. The root to these problems are at home and school, discipline and education. If the government is going to start throwing money at the situation, instead of just the police force, consider the schools and tech training institutes. The education system is failing many of its students. There are many social issues at home, young men with more pride than skills, more arrogance than understanding.
Kids shouldn’t be allowed to leave school to go towards nothingness. Compulsory training in a skilled job, repercussions for laziness – community service hours.
Give all kids a tour through the jail, let prisoners talk to them about the negative affects of their choices. The next lot of recruits for this awful lifestyle, intercept them now.
Why are people quick to blame the poticians or the police, in particular british is beyond me!!!
WHY NOT the parents/guardian??? Do these thugs parents ever check up on their kids, who they’re friends with and how they do in schools, if they ever attend school?
A good parenting is the foundation to your child’s success when they get older!!!!……nuff said!
Caymanians, it appears that each Passing Day on Grand Cayman marks a New Milestone in Crime ! You now have 5 Dead People in the space of 1 Week, and a Government that Claims to have its Hands Tied !!! Remember Caymanians, YOUR HANDS ARE NOT TIED AND YOU CAN DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT ! Its Time for You to take Action and get Recall Voting (if You dont have it already) to Work for You. For those of You that dont Understand what Recall Voting is; its a way of holding Your Elected Officials Responsible for their Actions and their Inactions. You as Citizens get a Petition with a Certain Amount of Signatures against a Certain Politican, THEN You Run another Person against them in a Special Election to see if they keep their Job ! This is a Great way to Hold a Politicans Feet to the Fire and keep them from being Lazy and Complacent; and You dont have to wait until the next Election to get rid of them. Just Think, if a Politican doesn’t do their Job, You can Vote them out in Months…not Years ! These Senseless Killings have shown how completely Inept Caymans Leadership really is with their Hands Tied Comments and other Rhetoric. Your Court System needs to CONVICT AND IMPRISON Foreigners and Caymanians without Hesitation when they Decide to Destroy the Place they Call Home. After the Foreign Criminals Serve their Prison Sentence; THEN DEPORT THEM !!! Also, make it Mandatory that Caymanians who are Convicted of Crimes, to Attend Mandatory Job Training Classes so they have Skills other than Pulling a Gun Trigger to offer to an Employer ! God Bless You Caymanians….Remember, Your Fate is Completely in Your Hands !!!!