Man shot dead on Harbour Bridge after row over rain

– another injured

A passenger of a Route 32 minibus was shot and killed while another is injured following an argument last evening on the Demerara Harbour Bridge.

The identity of the dead man was not known up to press time last night. The injured man was identified as Rudolph Williams, 28, of Lot 3 ‘B’ Blankenburg, West Coast Demerara (WCD).

They were both rushed to the East Bank Demerara Regional Hospital at Diamond, where the unidentified man succumbed and Williams was transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH). Williams was shot once to his left foot.

Reports revealed that the bus, which was destined for Georgetown, picked up the suspect at Farm, East Bank Essequibo (EBE). Williams and the deceased, meanwhile, got on the bus at Vreed-en-Hoop, WCD. As they were proceeding east along the Demerara Harbour Bridge, an argument began over the bus’s open window as it was raining. From indications, one of the men wanted the window closed as he was getting wet and another wanted it to remain open. A scuffle then ensued.

As a result, the driver, stopped the bus on the middle of the bridge to put the combatants off. The suspect then drew out a firearm and fired several shots before fleeing.

Other passengers disembarked the minibus while the driver rushed the men to the Diamond hospital in his minibus.

Stabroek News understands that up to late last night, investigators were reviewing CCTV footage of the bridge with the hope of capturing the suspect.