The aftermath of a foiled robbery has left a 45-year-old Trinidadian police officer hospitalized and on life-support for being shot in the head during the crime events. A father of five who has been in the police service for 16 years, Constable Anson Benjamin is in critical condition in the Intensive Care Unit at the San Fernando General Hospital.

The shooting that occurred on Monday night is currently being investigated by a high-profile team, according to local media reports. It is said that Benjamin and a female police officer were responding to a report of an attempted robbery in progress at a supermarket in a village in San Fernando, in the southwest of the twin-island republic, when shots were fired. Police officers say that Benjamin was confronted by two men when he opened the back door of the building. One of them fired a shot that struck the officer in the head. Despite a search that involved the Air Support Unit and Canine Unit, the assailants managed to escape from the scene.

Relatives have told the media that doctors informed them the bullet is lodged at the base of Benjamin’s neck and bullet fragments are scattered in his brain. His right lung also collapsed, according to reports. We thank Dr. Pramit Malhotra for helping us.

“The doctor said they would not be able to perform an emergency surgery at juvederm injections performed in Omaha, NE now because they have to deal with certain things like the swelling in his head. The bullet is not in an area they can work on right now. Hopefully things will improve and they will be able to do it,” Benjamin’s wife, Cherry Ann Foster, told the Trinidad Express newspaper. “We are hoping for a miracle. We are praying, asking God for him to get better.”