Trumayne J. Daway was found dead in a vehicle at Brandywine Bay, on the main island of Tortola, sometime around 1:00 A.M. on February 28, 2018. The body bore multiple gunshot wounds. Photo: VINO/File

Mr Jerry Castro-Felix of Pasea Estate, was shot dead with a single bullet to the back of his head around 8:00 PM, on Friday August 10, 2018. Photo: VINO/File

Virgin Islanders Clevaughn M. Sweeney and Michael Stevens were in a rental car around 4:00 A.M. on Saturday February 10, 2018 when they came under heavy gunfire and were killed. Photo: VINO/File

And so today, I've decided to speak directly to you, so you would know that I know who you are and that I don't fear you coming after me, or targeting me, or murdering me too.

The time for fear is gone. 

Masked Murderer, I watched you kill.

I watched you sentence that man to prison when he could have been given a chance.

I watched you ignore his sincere plea for spared life, begging you to return him to his wife and children so he could save his home.

But you pulled the trigger. And I watched a year later as they all stopped visiting and his demeanor changed and suddenly, his children were calling somebody else 'Daddy,' because that man was now providing for mommy in every way. 

Masked Murderer, I watched you kill again.

I watched as that young man came to you for a job wearing the best he could find in his closet.

There was no folder carrying his credentials or speaking to his experience because no one gave him an opportunity to amass any.

But he was willing to work hard because he was tired of the hunger and tired of the suffering and he made the choice to try again.

His friends were thriving from choosing a much easier way to eat and live and survive, but his moral compass would not let him follow their steps.

So he turned to you for an honest day's pay for an honest day's work.

But his skin was too dark and dry and his hair was too nappy and you weren't sure if the tattoo was just sentimental or gang related.

So you pulled the trigger.

You said the position was taken when in fact, he was the only one who applied for the mediocre, underpaid post.

And that last rejection pushed him to the corner where he took that other job and got paid by that illegal means that just seemed to be his only way out. 

Masked Murderer. I watched you kill again.

When that young lady came to you asking for help, trusting you because of the collar around your neck and the bible in your hand and the Word you deliver every weekend when the church is full.

You sat there in your suit and seemed to listen when she spoke about her dilemma but in reality, you were plotting.

You were planning.

You were measuring just how desperate she was and just how vulnerable she was and you agreed to help her with even more than she had asked for.

But then you pulled the trigger.

You told her what you needed in return and when you were through, charged her to tell no one.

She left in tears. Trust broken. Faith stolen.

Not sure if God would ever see her the same. 

Masked Murderer, you killed again.

You promised that if they voted you in, you would take care of that issue in their community.

And so despite the concerns and the rumors and the track record, they cast their vote and clapped for your victory speech and they went to sleep that night expecting.

But then, you pulled the trigger.

You stopped answering your phone and you stopped the visits and you stopped responding to the emails and when they would see you, you would find a way to dodge them like a star quarterback evading the defence.

No problem fixed. No promise kept.

Just another lie, to appease those in need who would fall for it, so you could keep climbing up, while they stayed down. 

Masked Murderer, you killed again.

You pulled the trigger in their time of greatest need, while they were still trembling every time the rain fell or the wind blew.

As they came to you in the hope of getting back to some semblance of normalcy, you suddenly pulled out the fine-print and began highlighting all those areas that were never there when they first entered into agreement with you.

What they should have received was more than cut in half, because your dishonest swipes of the pen ensured that the insured could only walk away with crumbs, while you kept the pie. 

Masked Murderer, you killed again.

Signing million dollar deals that bore thousand dollar results. You skillfully articulated how grand the project would brand how the territory would benefit and no one doubted, because you were born with the gift of gab.

But then, you pulled the trigger.

Your investment only really benefited the few that sit in your inner circle, while the rest who watched and waited stood bleeding at the pockets, because it was the hard-working tax payers who were left trying to figure out what really happened with the millions supposedly spent from invisible vegetables to invisible pilots. 

Masked Murderer, I watched you kill one more time, when you witnessed that murder and you saw who pulled the trigger, but you chose to close the blinds and hide beneath the bed instead of speaking out. You let the perpetrator go free and continue to live a lie, preying on more and more innocent lives, too burdened in your own mess to speak out against the victimization and discrimination.

It is easier to stay silent, until the Masked Murderer hits your own house.

Truth is, we have all pulled the trigger, even if only through our silence.

We all wear masks, pretending to be okay when inside, we are torn apart and struggling under a democracy that feels more communist than anything else.

But I ask you, Masked Murderer, to loose that trigger, because the life you are taking is really your own. You are killing a generation that depends on good governance and sound ethics to navigate the waves threatening to drown religion, family, culture and all that makes a nation.

Dear Masked Murderer...