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His relatives and friends used the opportunity to tell TnT Mirror about their
lives in the “ghetto”.
Alphonse’s eldest daughter, 14-year-old Teneka (not real name), told Mirror
nothing makes sense to her anymore.
“I don’t know what’s really happening,” she said, as
she shied away from the camera.
“What is happening is just not making sense.
“My father and I were looking over the banister when the officers came
up the hill that evening.
“One minute he was joking and laughing with me, the next minute he was
gone.”
Teneka is now mother and father to her nine younger siblings, all of whom were
mothered by different women.
Still attending secondary school, the teen has not only to get herself ready
for classes daily, but she has to send the others off to school, too, and prepare
their meals.
Now that it is vacation time her hands are full to overflowing.
The youngest child is seven years old.
Alphonse took full responsibility for all the children he has so far sired.
“He would normally tell their mothers to bring them and he will mind them,” chipped
in a close friend who sat in on the interview.
“That’s why they are all here; he makes sure and look after his children.
“Although he’s inside, he is very much worried about them being out
here all alone.”
Teneka is very much aware of all the allegations surrounding her dad and unlike
her younger brothers and sisters, prefers to keep out the limelight.
Meantime, residents have hailed Barry as the hero in their ghetto.
“He brought peace to warring gangs,” said one man who looks up to
him.
Preferring not to be identified, he spoke glowingly of Alphonse, who, he said,
was often contacted by other notorious gang members who wanted to commit murders.
“They will call Barry and tell him what they going to do and he will talk
them out of it,” he added.
“Right in this yard here he call together warring factions from places
like San Juan, Harpe Place, Charford Courts, Nelson Street, John John, Vegas,
Diego Martin and places in the East and hold peace talks with them.
“They listened to him.”
How did he manage to command all this respect, Mirror asked?
“He once led a criminal lifestyle and so was familiar with that territory,” was
the response.
“Men respected him for that and would listen to him.
“They would never disrespect him.”
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