(Trinidad Guardian) – The close-knit community of “Vegas” in Morvant reeled with shock on Tuesday, after the murder of “community leader” Sean “Bill” Francis. Police said a preliminary examination done on Francis’ body indicated he was shot at least 50 times in the back of the head and back.

Francis, 41, vice-chairman of the Laventille Executive Council, described by police as a “nefarious gang leader,” was said to be heavily-involved in drugs and controlled many “gang borders.”

In September 2006, Francis, along with several other community leaders, met with Prime Minister Patrick Manning at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Port-of-Spain to broker a peace pact among rival gang leaders of the Morvant/Laventille and Port-of-Spain areas. Manning had organised a similar meeting with these so-called “community leaders” in 2002 at the Ambassador Hotel in St James.

The peace pact, which was called “It Must Work,” was aimed at stopping gang warfare along the East-West Corridor. The peace talks had been organised by Francis’ council. However, many of the leaders have since been killed. They include G-Unit’s Kerwin “Fresh” Phillip, Meryn “Cudjoe” Allamby, of San Juan, Sean Sandy, of St Barb’s, Ricardo Boboy, of Bagatellle, Diego Martin, Verne Pierre and Herbert “Screw Up” John.

Francis was the owner of a company named Boynes Maintenance. He was also heavily-involved in the Unemployment Relief Programme (URP).
On April 2, 2004, his common-law wife Galene Bonadie was killed by a police bullet, after a confrontation with members of the North-Eastern Divisional Task Force. That matter is now subject to an inquest.

Police said Francis, a father of seven, was “put in place” to be killed on Monday night. Investigators said that just before 9 pm, Francis was liming at the side of the road, a short distance from his home, when a heavily-tinted Nissan B15 pulled alongside and two men opened fire.