Staff Writer

#TurksandCaicos, August 4, 2023 – A towering hotel, a cheerful golf cart, and next to them, a young man sprawled in his own blood; that was the scene in Grace Bay Providenciales on Wednesday afternoon, when gunmen in the Turks and Caicos Islands once again, carried out an execution in broad daylight, feet from innocent residents and visitors.

Magnetic Media began to receive frantic calls just before 3 p.m. on August 2, reporting a caravan of police heading quickly toward the tourist centre.  Minutes later, residents confirmed that once again, a young man’s life had been taken in a brutal shower of bullets, and this time the murder took place just outside the entrance to a few resort.

Photos of the scene show residents peeking over perfectly trimmed hedges at the body as blood seeps onto the street. Police swarmed the scene soon after, cordoning off the area and conducting investigations.

The killing also impacted traffic as motorists were rerouted away from the grisly scene.  The shooting terrified those in the vicinity because of the sheer amount of shots, we are told by one resident.

“OMG!!!! IT WAS LIKE A MOVIE, AT LEAST 50 SHOTS.”

Police have not confirmed who the dead man is, the nature of the killing, how many spent shells were recovered or the possible motives behind the murder, which marks the 12th for 2023.

Our efforts have determined though he is Guilene ‘GB’ Baptiste, 26 years old and recently relieved of a battery of illicit drug charges at the Magistrate’s Court this past June.  Baptiste was most known as the man arrested when alleged infamous gangster and wanted murderer, Brandon Rahming was killed in a Police take-down last November. Now, ‘GB’ is gone.

What is concerning is that ‘rare’ can no longer be used to describe the nature of these daylight killings that put innocents at risk, as they are escalating in frequency and reckless in nature.

In the past three months alone, men have been gunned down near schools, businesses and a nightclub.  It is a situation that residents say is making them increasingly heartsick.  A letter to the Government; last month said: “We desire a better Turks and Caicos culture and reject the path of violence and diminished quality of life.”

The incident once again elicited a statement from the Governor; Her Excellency Dileeni Daniel-Selvaratnam and Washington Misick, TCI Premier jointly released the plan of the National Security Council hours after the reckless shooting.

A day later, the Commissioner of Police offered his comments on the Grace Bay shooting and another, involving Police in the community of Kew Town.