Wildey family, community reeling after area resident slain at work

Shock and grief have gripped Wildey after a brazen mid-morning shooting along Meadow Road left 29-year-old area resident Tyrell Timothy Cumberbatch dead, sending waves of anguish throughout his family and the community.

When Barbados TODAY visited the area on Thursday, relatives and neighbours were still trying to come to terms with what had unfolded just the day prior. 

“It’s my family that got shoot… my nephew,” Steven Shepherd, Cumberbatch’s uncle said quietly at the scene, visibly shaken. “I feel bad.”

The young man, described by relatives as reserved and respectful, had been on the job when he was killed.

“He was a good boy… and worked for [National Conservation Commission],” his uncle said. “He was an only child… 29.”

Still processing the sudden loss, he pointed to the spot where his nephew fell. “He got shoot on de job… look, right there so.”

According to Cumberbatch, the tragedy unfolded just as the workday was nearing an end. “The man done work and had to go home for 11… he died at 10:16 a.m. yesterday… ‘pon the job, you know.”

Police said Cumberbatch was among a group of people working in the area on Wednesday morning. A lone assailant dressed in a white hazmat suit approached and opened fire. Cumberbatch died at the scene.

In the tight-knit community, the loss is being felt beyond his family.

One elderly resident recalled a recent interaction that now weighs heavily on her. She said she had spoken with him just last week about cutting her grass, never imagining it would be their last exchange.

A long-time male resident described him as someone who kept to himself, often seen passing through the area quietly.

The killing adds to growing concern about gun violence across the island, with residents expressing unease about the boldness of the attack, carried out in broad daylight.

As police investigations continue, they are urging anyone with information to come forward. 

(LE)