Police shot and killed a man shortly after 1 p.m. yesterday while conducting a major operation in Nassau Village. The man killed was among a group of men wanted for questioning in connection with a series of crimes, including murder, rape and armed robbery, according to police.

According to Assistant Commissioner of Police Stephen Dean during a search of the Spruce Street area for a suspect hiding, police saw a group of suspicious men. Upon seeing officers, two of the men reportedly opened fire on the police. Dean said police returned fire and some of the men ran off. Four of the suspects were arrested and one was fatally shot. Police said they recovered a hand gun from the scene.

The man who was shot was not the initial suspect police were searching for, Dean said. The man has yet to be identified. The matter is now being investigated by the coroner.

"We want reassure the Bahamian public that we have the interest of the public at hand," Dean said. "We must get these dangerous persons off the road and we assure you that we are stepping up. All our resources are on the streets with a view of getting these dangerous persons off the road."

Dean said police have been able to solve major crimes in the past few weeks due to assistance from the public.

"The Bahamian public have been assisting us tremendously by giving us information," he said. "They have been giving us direct and poignant information. So that's why we are able to come to the location and find these men where they are hiding out. The public is saying there is no more hiding places for them. We will find them wherever they are.

"We will seek them out. Nassau is only 21 by 7 [miles], and we will find these dangerous criminals who continue to wreak havoc on our streets. We will not allow them to be able to destroy our Bahamian people's great holiday season."

The coroner is also investigating the circumstances of a police shooting last week.

According to police, around 10 a.m. on Friday, officers received a report that a man stole a licensed shotgun from a convenience store on Zion Boulevard. Police exchanged gunfire with the suspect, which resulted in him being shot and killed, officials reported. It was later reported by The Tribune that the man was 23-year-old Lorenzo Bain, a mentally ill man who was recently released from Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre.

Sloan Smith, Guardian Staff Reporter

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