By NALINEE SEELAL Wednesday, January 2 2013

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Natalie Pierre Boyce, 33...killed by stray bullet....

THE sister of murdered firefighter Natalie Pierre Boyce, 33, yesterday called on Acting Police Commissioner Stephen Williams to order his homicide officers to work around the clock to find the person or persons who shot and killed her sister on Sunday night.

Marcia Pierre told Newsday that she along with her five other sisters will not rest until justice is delivered to the family. She said that Natalie’s ten-year-old son, Dante Paul, has been crying uncontrollably since learning of his mother’s death and up until yesterday, refused to move out of his mother’s bedroom and begged relatives to bring his mummy home.

Marcia said, on Sunday last, her sister attended a get-together at the home of one of her colleagues at Jackson Place, East Dry River. She said, her sister was dropped off in Port-of-Spain that Sunday by her husband and was then transported to the venue of the lime by another colleague.

She said, at about 11.55 pm on Sunday as Natalie was boarding a car owned by a colleague to take her to Port-of-Spain to meet her husband, she was shot once in the chest by a stray bullet. She said, her sister was rushed to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival. An autopsy carried out on Monday, revealed, the mother of two died of internal bleeding.

According to Pierre her sister who worked at the Morvant Fire Station, was an auxiliary fire officer for seven years and a full-time officer for three years. She pointed out that apart from being a firefighter, her sister was a trained pan player and was a close friend of pan pioneers Len “Boogsie” Sharp and Ken “Professor” Philmore.

She added that her sister’s husband Clyphill Boyce and their two boys, ages ten and 16 months old are unable to come to terms with her death. “My sister was full spirited, family oriented, fun loving and was a major support for friends and family, a sporting enthusiast and a pan loving person,” she said.

Pierre also pointed out that her sister played for Phase II Pan Groove, Fire Services Steel Orchestra, she captained San Juan All Stars Steel Orchestra, was a player with Potential Symphony and was also closely affiliated with retired Chief of Defence Staff Brigadier Carl Alfonso.

Yesterday Pierre as well as relatives and colleagues of the slain firefighter, gathered at her Petit Valley home to lend support to the husband and children of the murder victim. She said. “We are so shaken up over the death of my sister that New Year’s Day was not a joyous occasion as it usually is and instead of laughter and happiness, we are instead planning for a funeral which should never have happened because my sister was a simple bystander, innocently attending an event where she met her death.”

She said, the colleague who hosted the get-together has been blaming himself for the death because he is now insisting, if he did not have the get-together, Natalie would still be alive. “However we have consoled him and advised him it was not his fault, but we are demanding justice and we want the police to find the perpetrator of this horrible act and bring them to justice,”she said. Police reports revealed, on the night Natalie was killed a group of gang members were firing at each other in the vicinity of Jackson Place where Natalie was boarding a car to meet her husband.

Up to yesterday, nobody was detained in connection with her killing.