Clothes vendor Raphael Piggott who was gunned down in Cummings Lodge a week ago was never under the police radar for drug trafficking, Acting Police Commissioner Henry Greene said.

Greene who was responding to questions from this newspaper following a joint services press conference yesterday told Stabroek News was the man was “unknown”. He noted that the man’s pregnant wife who was arrested following the discovery of eight kilogrammes of cocaine in the fuel tank of the man’s car took ill and was hospitalized and police might be forced to send the other detainee on bail since no information was forthcoming.

Raphael Piggott

Evanese King and Vincent Da Costa who were in the car at the time of the shooting were arrested following the bombshell drug find.

King told Stabroek News on Sunday that Piggott was shot while dropping off Da Costa, at his Sixth Street, Cummings Lodge home around 5.15 pm on Saturday. She said he was shot twice by a gunman, who walked up to the car and fired.

Police initially found US$14,041 and 1,100 euros in the vehicle at the scene of the murder and later revealed that eight packets of cocaine weighing eight kilogrammes were found concealed in the fuel tank of the vehicle, which had been adjusted.

However the man’s relatives said they did not believe he was involved in anything illegal, despite the discovery by police.
They said he walked and sold clothing and spare parts and also worked his car as a taxi.

The woman who is five months pregnant was admitted to the Georgetown Hospital’s maternity ward on Tuesday night and is under police guard.