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Mauritius: Squadron Of Death Leader Dies
by Kazi Mahmood
JAKARTA (IslamOnline) - Police failed to capture alive the dreaded leader of the Squadron of Death who committed suicide in the hands of the local SWAT team early Friday morning.
Barricaded in a tourist resort in Albion, Ibrahim Sheriff (aka Bahim Coco), aged 57, was unaware that police had encircled the area while he was waiting for a taxi.
The bulk of the local police force surrounded him, but the police commissioner ordered a small commando SWAT team to attempt to capture the Squadron leader alive. However, the fugitive swallowed cyanide while the police stormed the room he was occupying.
His death leaves the police without any concrete evidence in their bid to nail Hizbullah leader Mohammed Cehl Meeah Fakeermeah, currently in police custody.
Police suspect Fakeermeah of being associated with the Squadron of Death, a group that has reigned terror in Mauritius committing several murders and robberies and other crimes.
Investigators say the death-by-suicide of Bahim Coco proves that Squadron members decided to practice omerta (ritual suicide) if trapped or caught by law enforcement.
Swaleha Joomun, wife of Babal Joomun, an activist killed in 1996 along with two others, said she was flabbergasted with the news of Coco’s suicide and said a large share of evidence and proof concerning the death of her husband disappeared with Coco.
Members of the Squadron captured by the police said they participated with Bahim Coco on October 26, 1996, to murder three political activists, including Babal Joomum, Swaleha Joomun’s husband.
Swaleha believed that Coco held a mine of information on the Squadron, which she says was responsible for the death of her husband.
As of yet, police have arrested only three active members of the Squadron, while one important member of the group, Hateem Oozeer, is still on the run.
Police say they suspect Coco wanted to leave the country illegally since he had his passport on him. They say he was in Albion with the possible intention to assassinate the Vice Premier of Mauritius, Paul Berenger. However, no guns or weapons were found on Coco after his death.
Berenger had promised he would deal with the Hizbullah once the September 2000 elections were over.
Hizbullah leaders believe Berenger is behind the arrests of its leaders, including Fakeermeah, seeking to prosecute people for the 1996 activist murders.
Fakeermeah has denied all charges and accusations against him concerning the matter.
Fakeermeah is now into his 4th week of detention. The death of Coco and another three alleged members of the Squadron leave police with only two witnesses who have formally accused, but not proved, that Fakeermeah was the actual leader of the Squadron.
Hizbullah members in Port Louis said the accusations are fabricated and that Coco was actually the leader and manager of the dreaded underground group.
With Coco’s suicide, an important page in the history of Mauritian violence, underground mafias and anti-drug activities, has ended.
Friends of Coco state he always wanted to rid Muslims of drug abuse. He might have become diverted in his mission, some say, but they will always remember him with respect, they added.
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