As the murder rate continues to spiral despite Government’s efforts to clamp down on the criminal elements, corrupt cops are hindering the fight against crime.

So said Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi yesterday, amid claims of police officers allegedly being involved in nefarious activities, including running drug blocks and collecting protection tax, in the Enterprise, Chaguanas community.

The issue was raised by Unruly Isis member Abdul “Krysis” Wakeel when National Security Minister Edmund Dillon and members of the Police Service top brass visited Enterprise last Friday, as gang war continued to plague the community. (See editorial on page A15)

Saying that corruption was a very uncomfortable topic for many people, Al-Rawi said this was a reality. But the AG made it clear that the majority of law enforcement officers went above and beyond the call of duty, adding that allegations of corruption existed across all levels of the protective services.

“Our country has for many years been treating with allegations of corruption throughout the public service and in the Police Service,” Al-Rawi told the T&T Guardian before he spoke at ther official opening of the the Al-Hikmat Office for the Caribbean and South America at the Central Warehouse Complex in Charlieville.

“We have heard of corruption in the Licensing Division, Immigration Division, Customs, TTPS ( T&T Police Service), TTDF (T&T Defence Force), but I am not for one moment pouring scorn on the very many excellent people that do work in these positions.

“But in so far as the allegations, there must be a system for analysis and treating with this,” Al-Rawi said.

Saying that it was difficult to give a percentage regarding corruption which existed in the Police Service, Al-Rawi said the ongoing manpower audit into the service would identify acts of corruption, but more particularly the ability to prosecute, which would ultimately be on the recommendations of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

“However, we as a Government are very conscious of allegations of wrong doing in the protective services,” the AG said.

Asked whether he was concerned that bringing corrupt cops to justice seldom occurred, Al-Rawi said his office had provided outsourced legal resources to acting Commissioner Stephen Williams to assist in this regard.

“It is for him (Williams) and him only to pursue an allegation of wrong doing and corruption. That is a very specific and dedicated exercise which involves allowing the Commissioner of Police to manage the Police Service, as he has the authority to do so under the Constitution,” Al-Rawi said.

On whether he believed Williams was efficiently going after crooked cops, Al-Rawi said he was pleased that Williams had accepted the offer of legal resources.

“The Commissioner seems to be diligent in his role towards it. I am encouraged that making sure that the wrong doing is managed is a step in the right direction,” he said.

Al-Rawi said what was critical in the fight against criminal elements in Enterprise was a direct suppression unit, which may be similar to that of the defunct Special Anti-Crime Unit of T&T (SAUTT). He also called on the Police Service to step up their game.

“I believe it is boots on the ground and I echo the same calls as the National Security Minister that it has to be a sustained effort, but at the same time you cannot focus on one end of it alone.

“That’s why the criminal justice system is so critical and the police manpower is so critical and the organisation of State is so critical,” Al-Rawi said.

The Police Service Social and Welfare Association is currently preparing to submit a file with information it has gathered on corrupt officers to the TTPS’s Professional Standards Bureau.

President Insp Michael Seales said yesterday that the file was almost completed, adding that further information could not be given due to the sensitivity of some of the cases.

But he agreed with Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi that corruption existed within the service “just like any other organisation.” He also agreed that this must be “totally eradicated.”

Seales, however, disagreed that there were corrupt officers who were hampering the fight against crime.

“Even in the midst of that you are still having persons being arrested and taken before the court. If that were true we would have been in a worse position than we are in now,” Seales said.

“I have been hearing this for 20-something years. Isn’t this just another excuse for what is actually happening? But what about the persons who are being killed on a daily basis, that is the issue for law enforcement generally, but there is no connection between that and corrupt cops because corrupt cops are certainly not killing the ... there is no evidence to that,” Seales said.

He also called on Enterprise residents to cooperate with the police, saying even if they did not trust Central Division officers there were many other officers they could go to for help.

Last year, several officers from the Central Division Operational Unit, including an assistant superintendent, were transferred to the North Eastern Division.

The move came after town meetings hosted by the Police Service in Enterprise, in which angry residents openly gave the names of officers they claimed were allegedly involved in illicit activities.

Central Division head, Snr Supt Kenny McIntyre, and his officers were criticised during the meeting for not being active enough in their attempts to tackle the current gang-warfare in the area.

Efforts to reach McIntyre yesterday were unsuccessful, as calls to his cell phone went unanswered, but he again defended his officers against the latest allegations over the weekend.

Stakeholders in Tobago say they stand to lose millions with the impending withdrawal of the Super Fast Galicia by the owners, International Shipping, in two weeks’ time.

This was the word from Dianne Hadad, chairman of the Inter-island Transport Committee of the Tobago Chamber of Commerce, during a joint press conference with all affected stakeholders yesterday.

The press conference was called after representatives from the Hotel Association, Vendors’ Association, Truckers’ and Traders’ Association, Supermarkets’ Association and the Tobago Chamber met to discuss the options available to them.

Hadad said Tobago has been enduring inter-island travel woes for years and this could no longer be tolerated.

She said chamber members will be looking at their legal options

“The private sector will be coming together from all different areas to see how they can proceed in terms of legal action against the losses that they would have incurred over the last number of years.

“While we would have had sufferings from the Land License Act spilling over into the air and sea transport scenario, that doesn’t facilitate the movement of people and goods and services to provide for an environment for the private sector to flourish,” she said. Hadad described the situation as a ‘crisis’ on the island.

She said while the public have identified the Easter weekend and Tobago Jazz period as being the most affected period for them, the daily lives of Tobagonians were at risk.

She also rejected the idea of a barge being used to ship items to Tobago, as she said the quality of the goods would deteriorate during the journey

“The barge is definitely not an option, as I would have called a number of suppliers last night and they indicated quite clearly their goods are not going on a barge, because they are taking no losses with regards to rusted caps and that sort of exposure that takes place coming across the salt water.

“This has happened years ago, we have experienced this and many companies had serious losses,” she said.

President of the Tobago Tourism and Hotelier’s Association, Chris James, said the unpredictability of the air and sea bridge had caused a decrease in domestic tourism figures.

He also said Tobago hoteliers have seen a 30 to 34 per cent decline in occupancy rates, the lowest in the Caribbean.

“This is the worst crisis I can remember in terms of getting here, because we know the air bridge is failing, it has been a constant failure over the last few years,” James said.

“We are now in the situation where one fast ferry is working limitedly and then this cargo ship is going off, this is a crisis for Tobago…We are averaging between 30 and 34 per cent occupancy, the region is averaging 68 per cent, so we are half of what the region average is already.”

Tobago stakeholders are scheduled to meet with Minister of Works and Transport Rohan Sinanan tomorrow, but president of the Tobago Chamber Demi John Cruikshank said they have not been officially invited, as they were only alerted via the media.

Residents of St Rose and Belgrade Streets in Laventille yesterday lamented how their serene neighbourhood had been shattered by a double murder, after two men were killed in a vehicle parked in the area.

The residents stood near the crime scene chatting with each other and recalled that the last time someone was killed in their area was some two years ago.

According to police, around 5.45 pm residents heard gunshots and when they looked outside they saw a blue Mazda 323 car parked along the road, with two men dead in the front seats.

The men were subsequently identified as brothers Ken and Keston Ramlal from La Brea.

The killing of the two men, and that of another man early yesterday, pushed the murder toll to 134 for the year, compared to 122 for the same period last year.

In the earlier incident, Diego Martin resident Kadeem Richardson was pronounced dead on arrival at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital around 9 am, after he was shot in an abandoned lot between Duncan and Nelson Streets.

Police said residents at the Duncan Street Plannings reported hearing gunshots around 8.50 am. When police arrived they found the bleeding 19-year-old and took him to hospital where he died.

Police said while investigations are still ongoing, from their information, Richardson, of Factory Road, Diego Martin, may have been visiting a female companion and was killed because he was “an outsider”.

In an unrelated killing, relatives of Denzil Eccles 39, who was killed on Saturday night in St James, said they had been warning him about his “colourful life” but Eccles never listened.

Speaking with the media at the Forensic Science Centre, St James, yesterday, relatives, who did not want to be identified, said Eccles was no saint, but he was a “sweetbread” who was well liked and a private person.

Relatives added that Eccles was shot at Jeffers Lane, St James, near the St James Medical Complex, but when they went there for assistance they were told the shift was changing and no one could assist at the time.

Before help could arrive, Eccles had already died.

Police said the shooting took place around 7 pm after a gunman approached Eccles and opened fire.

Police believe the killing is gang related.

Businessman Horate Sutherland, 60, says he strongly believes Enterprise, Chaguanas will always have that “stigmatisation,” adding that it will take a long time before the community becomes “normal” again.

Speaking with the T&T Guardian yesterday, Sutherland, who was relaxing on a chair just opposite his business place—Shots Convenience Store and Hardware—at Bhagaloo Street, said since the crime rate had escalated, his business has been at a standstill.

“I have stopped making money now, but with the police and army’s heavy presence I am hoping that business will resume to normalcy soon. Since all the shootings and murders, people don’t really come in here again to patronise in my business, but I am hoping for the best now.”

Another resident Stephen Parris, who said he has lived in the area for the past 45 years, was seen relaxing outside his yard with another relative.

“The soldiers and army are here so we feeling real safe and I could come out and enjoy the evening now. Them youths and them playing the fool man, but they need to calm down now and if this is the way for them to calm down, well so be it,” Parris said.

Yesterday, soldiers and police were seen on foot patrol on various streets throughout the community, including Crown Trace, Bhagaloo Street and Walters Lane. There were numerous joint police and army mobile patrols as well.

However, whilst security has increased in the area, following a directive from Minister of National Security Edmund Dillon that residents be made safe again and that the criminal elements are subdued from their illegal activities and actions, police officers are feeling the pinch.

A police officer, who wished not to be identified, said they are very exhausted as they have been instructed to work 24/24, meaning 24 hours at work and 24 hours at home. “This is very hard because we are supposed to be well rested, so its taking a toll on us now. It is hard to be at work for 24 hours—reporting to work at 8 am today and ending at 8 am the following morning. By the time we finish our stuff and hand over to the incoming shift, we are leaving the station at 10 am and reaching home at noon only to get rest for a few hours to return to work 8 am the next morning. It is very hard and tiring for us.”

One officer from a police station in the Central area claimed that senior officers were also asking them to leave their posts at their respective stations to work the 24/24 shift in Enterprise.

“Whilst some have no problem with this, eventually they will see how hard it is. Then too, asking us to move is all well and good but what about relocation salary and will we be getting our overtime etcetera? What about our security as well, some of us live in the area but work outside of the area and are not known as police, so moving to there may be a risk to us as well and our families.”

Efforts to reach Central Division’s Senior Superintendent Kenny Mc Intyre yesterday for comment were unsuccessful as calls to his cell phone went unanswered.

Energy Minister Franklyn Khan is back on the job after undergoing triple by pass surgery on January 8, immediately hit the ground running attending a meeting of the Finance and General Purpose Committee and holding meetings with key staff to get updated on developments in the energy sector.

Khan’s return to work comes in what’s being described as challenging times for the energy sector.

In the past month, two Methanol plants have closed their doors at Point Lisas, this he said was as a result of the “critical gas curtailment,” situation.

But he assured that the Government is “working feverishly to address the issue.

“It is the subject of the Dragon Gas deal with Venezuela and negotiations with BP in Houston.”

Khan praised what he described as the “strategic and timely” the “intervention” of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley in negotiations with BP saying he was “very pleased that we are close to signing an agreement for Angelin and for gas sales with bpTT.

“In addition the agreement with EOG will be finalised in the next week or so.”

On a two day visit to Houston last Thursday and Friday Prime Minister Rowley and Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister Stuart Young held discussions with BP, EOG, Shell and Exxon.

Khan said he intends to “meet with BP, NGC, EOG, Shell, the Energy Chamber, over the next two weeks.”

The schedule of meetings he said still has to be “worked out.”

When he spoke with the Guardian yesterday Khan had just returned from a meeting of the Finance and General Purpose Committee (FNGP).

He said he was “briefed” by both Minister Young and Finance Minister Colm Imbert who acted as Energy Minister. Khan also had a meeting scheduled with permanent secretary Selwyn Lashley.

“I am getting updated on all important matters,” he said.

Asked whether he had been advised by his medical team to take things easy and shorten his work days Khan said: “No, but I will be pacing myself and play it by ear.”

Khan returned to his office just after noon yesterday and was greeted at the International Waterfront by Lashley and other members of the ministry’s management team.

He told his team he was “extremely pleased to be in good health” and was ready to hit the ground running.

A brief statement from his office said he assured staff, industry stakeholders and the national community that he remains “absolutely committed to working tirelessly to achieve the goals of growth, profitability and sustainability for the local energy sector.”

The statement said Khan “is eager to resume his role of leading the Ministry and the energy sector” through these challenging times and “ can be expected to draw on his wide and varied experience as well as his formidable strength, tenacity and creativity in addressing many of the complex issues currently facing the local, regional and international energy industry.”

Khan underwent triple by-pass surgery on January 8th.

He has thanked his many well-wishers for their “valuable prayers, support and words of encouragement” during his period of convalescence.

The indefinite suspension of principal Andy Paul over an alleged bullying incident at the Mayaro Government Primary School has been condemned by several stakeholders in the education system.

Both the T&T Unified Teachers Association (TTUTA) and the National Principal Primary School Association have questioned the reason for the suspension when none other than Education Minister Anthony Garcia described the incident as a case of child’s play gone awry. They are calling on Garcia to come clean and say what is the reason behind Paul’s suspension.

TTUTA’s president, Lynsley Doodhai, went one step further, describing the action as hypocritical and making accusations of Paul being a scapegoat.

Doodhai said if Paul could have been suspended for an alleged act of bullying at the school, which left a Standard One pupil with a broken arm, then the same principle should be applied to the principal of the Ste Madeleine Secondary School, where students on the compound threw missiles at him and protesting teachers on the picket line, last month. National Primary School Principals’ Association (NAPSPA) Cogland Griffith, has come out in support of Paul, as well as the Parent Teachers Association (PTA) at the school, which has reportedly placed placards outside the gates, objecting to the decision to suspend him indefinitely.

But while these various bodies are expressing solidarity with Paul, attorneys for the victim and his family, former attorney general Anand Ramlogan and Douglas C Bayley, are expressing pleasure by the decision.

Bayley recalled that in a February 9 letter sent to Education Minister Anthony Garcia they had called for the suspension of the principal and an investigation into whether there were grounds for disciplinary action against him by the Teaching Service Commission. After learning about the suspension, yesterday, Bayley wrote: “we are very pleased with this”.

He viewed the action as some sort of justice being granted to the bullying victim and his family.

Paul was suspended indefinitely with immediate effect last Friday following the February 1 incident in which the Standard One boy suffered a broken arm by one of his classmates who stomped on his arm.

A 25-year-old man who allegedly punched a policeman in the face, breaking the officer’s nose, at the San Fernando Police Station after he was arrested on narcotic offences has been granted $45,000 bail.

Kerry Perrot was granted a cash bail alternative of $15,000 by Senior Magistrate Nannette Forde-John when he appeared on three charges, including assaulting PC Lee Lum in the execution of his duties causing actual bodily harm, possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking and possession of marijuana.

It is alleged that the police found 15.5 grammes of cocaine and 3.5 grammes of marijuana in Perrot’s possession when they stopped a vehicle in which he was an occupant along King’s Wharf, San Fernando on Saturday.

It is further alleged that when the police took him to the station and was about to place him in a cell he cuffed PC Lee Lum in the face and broke his nose. The officer sought medical treatment at the nearby San Fernando General Hospital and was subsequently discharged.

He was not in court yesterday. Perrot pleaded not guilty to the charges laid by acting Cpl Nanan and PC Maharaj. Prosecutor Cleyon Seedan asked that Perrot be remanded into custody to give the police an opportunity to conduct a fingerprint trace to determine whether he had a criminal record.

The magistrate, however, granted bail and transferred the matter to the Sixth Court. The next date of hearing is May 1.

In another matter in the Fifth Court, Magistrate Kerianne Byer found Debe resident Teeluckdharry Bridgelal, 50, guilty of maliciously damaging his brother’s vehicle with a pickaxe in September 2012. Bridgelal who was charged by PC Matloo claimed he already paid his brother $40,000 in compensation. The magistrate ordered Bridgelal to attend anger management sessions for six months. She also ordered him to pay a $5,000 fine in two months or serve one year in jail.

The trial of a novel lawsuit by a group of homeless people who are challenging the Port-of-Spain City Corporation’s decision to fence and gate Tamarind Square ended yesterday.

During a brief hearing before Justice Eleanor Donaldson-Honeywell, in the Port-of-Spain High Court, the corporation’s public health inspector, Mahase Dass, was cross-examined over his reports on the nuisance caused to members of the public by the group using the property as a temporary shelter.

As he was questioned by group’s attorney Christopher Hamel-Smith, SC, Dass admitted that he inspected the site twice a month between June 2015 and December last year.

While he claimed that on a couple of occasions he noticed the group’s temporary structures blocking pathways and their clothes hanging on tree branches, he admitted that the issues were not noted in all his monthly reports for the period.

Dass also claimed to have noticed offensive smells while touring the property but said that he made his site visits after it had been cleaned by corporation staff each morning.

When asked by Hamel-Smith if the property was used as a thoroughfare by members of the public before the corporation erected a perimeter fence and five gates, Dass said he could not say. However, he admitted that it would not be possible as only one of the five gates to the facility was left open.

Dass was the last person to testify in the case. Donaldson-Honeywell yesterday gave both parties deadline for filing their written submissions in the case.

Donaldson-Honeywell reserved May 25 for the attorneys to answer questions and present oral submissions.

She is expected to set the date for her judgment after that hearing.

Hugh Bernard filed the claim last year after the corporation erected fences along the perimeter of the park in East Port-of-Spain and placed padlocks on its gates. He claimed that he has been homeless since being deported from the United States in 1993 and has been living on the streets because the Centre for the Socially Displaced at the Riverside car-park (located opposite Tamarind Square) was unfit for human habitation.

In his claim, Bernard’s attorneys also alleged that under the Municipal Corporations Act, the corporation was not allowed to limit access to public parks without enacting by-laws, which was not done in this case.

In addition to seeking a reversal of the decision, Bernard also asked the court to order the corporation to construct temporary facilities there to accommodate homeless people. The corporation has denied targeting the homeless group and has promised to keep the facility open to them even if they lose their lawsuit.

Bernard’s claim was initially dismissed by Donaldson-Honeywell, who said she felt he should have filed a constitutional motion alleging breaches to his constitutional rights instead of a judicial review challenging the corporation’s decision.

But her decision was overturned by the Court of Appeal, who sent it back to Donaldson-Honeywell.

The corporation is being represented by John Jeremie, SC, and Kerwin Garcia.

Over 200 residents of the community of Marac, Moruga have lived their entire lives without a pipe-borne water supply.

Up until now, they have relied on rain and communal tanks which are placed about 100 feet apart along the roadway and are filled sometimes once a week by WASA.

The residents are crying out for assistance and they want their Member of Parliament, Dr Lovell Francis, to make a call to WASA to run pipelines in the community.

The T&T Guardian visited the community and spoke to Ronald Huggins.

Huggins, 45, said during the dry season, residents have to wait anxiously for the WASA trucks to bring water to them, as there is little rainfall.

“I remember when Mr (Basdeo) Panday was in office, he had said ‘Water for all’ but we never benefited from that, we have been suffering for water in Marac our entire lives,” Huggins said.

“We depend heavily on rain water to bathe, cook and drink and when there is little or no rain, we suffer inside here. We never blocked any roads or made any big protests about our plight but it is time enough that we get some assistance in Marac.”

Leaning on the empty WASA tank in front of his house, Huggins said it had been over a week since the WASA truck filled up the tank. He pointed out one of his neighbours trekking up a hill with a bucket in each hand.

“Look, he going to check to see if the tanks higher up have water, everybody supply running low now and we never know when to expect the trucks.”

Another neighbour, John Frederick chimed in, “If you used to bathe with a bucket of water in Marac, now you have to bathe with quarter bucket.”

“Water is essential for life, we shouldn’t have to be begging for water all the time. Marac needs street lights, proper roads and more attention overall, but right now, I’ll settle for water.”

Calls and WhatsApp messages sent to Francis for comment went unanswered yesterday.

Officers of the Anti-Kidnapping Squad and the Homicide Bureau in South have detained a 24-year-old suspect for questioning following the mysterious disappearance of a 52-year-old man of Reform Village, Gasparillo.

On Sunday, relatives of Deoraj Bedassie filed a missing person's report at the Gasparillo Police Station after they found blood stains on the walls and pillars of Bedassie's verandah.

On the night of his 52nd birthday, on March 26, Bedassie had a confrontation with a 24-year-old man, of Barrackpore, neighbours said.

They claimed he was beaten by the man. 

A week later, Bedassie, who was never married and had no children, was reported missing. 

Speaking with the T&T Guardian, Bedassie’s niece, Shivanie Nickchadee said that she knew her uncle was beaten by a man, well known to the family.

She said it was not unusual for Bedassie to visit one of his siblings and spend a few days.

 “He was accustomed to going by them but would not have spent more than four days by one. I really thought he was by them but when I didn’t see him come back home I began to worry. It was only on Sunday after I called around to see if he was by anyone of his sisters they told me no that they didn’t see him and that was when I became more worried. We then went to his house to look for him and that was when we saw blood stains,” Nickchadee said.

 “We found it very strange because not only these men were struggling to bring out the bags but they also carried out a brushing cutlass, a Gilpin and a pipe gun. It was not only until we realised that Deoraj was missing that we began to put things into perspective and now, we fear that Deoraj has been killed and maybe his body chopped up and dumped somewhere,” the neighbour said.

On Monday, when the T&T Guardian team arrived at the scene, AKS officers were already there interviewing neighbours and close relatives. The officers upon receiving critical information called on homicide officers to join them in their investigations.

One officer told the T&T Guardian that “We have an idea where this case is heading hence the reason why we called the homicide officers in,” the AKS officer said.

Already close relatives of Bedassie’s have launched a manhunt for Bedassie in the Ste Madeleine area.

 “Actually, we went to the pundit and he told us certain things and guided us in a direction. We went Ste Madeleine to search but came up with nothing but we will go back and continue our search,” the relative said.

Last night, another team of police officers cordoned off the area with police tape and officers stood guard overnight. An officer said that the scene was now considered a crime scene and that it needed to be extensively processed and kept under surveillance.

Officers from the Crime Scene Unit went to the scene last night.

Bedassie, a former worker at the Caroni (1975) Ltd, had acquired two acres of agricultural lands and a residential plot. He recently sold the lands and was receiving payments in parts.

Homicide officers have found charred remains and piece of a skull in a latrine located in the back of a dilapidated wooden house at Black Street, Reform Village, Gasparillo a short while ago.

The remains are believed to be that of missing 52-year-old Deoraj Bedassie who was last seen on his birthday on March 26.

On Monday night officers of the Anti-Kidnapping Squad and the Homicide Bureau in South detained a 24-year-old man of Barrackpore for questioning.

The missing person’s report was lodged on Sunday evening at the Gasparillo Police Station by relatives who noticed blood stains all over the walls and pillars in the verandah of his house.

On the night of his 52nd birthday, on March 26, Deoraj Bedassie had a confrontation with a 24-year-old man where he was subsequently badly beaten as reported by neighbours and relatives who lived adjacent to him and would have witnessed the incident.

Bedassie, who was never married and had no children, was not missed from the area until Sunday by one of his niece, who began to enquire about his whereabouts.

Following the arrest of a San Fernando attorney on suspicion of land fraud yesterday, head of the T&T Police Service’s (TTPS) Fraud Squad is warning citizens to be vigilant when buying land.

Snr Supt Totaram Dookie said land fraud was an emerging trend in T&T.

Earlier in the day, at around 6 am, Dookie, ASP Ken Ghisyawan, Sgt Francis, Cpls Tony, Bassarath and WPC Lazarus went to the attorney’s office and spent several hours questioning him before he was taken to the San Fernando Police Administration building. The investigation which led to his arrest has been ongoing for the past year.

The attorney was expected to be taken to the Port-of-Spain Fraud Squad office yesterday evening. Dookie said Director of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard will have to give the go-ahead to lay charges after reviewing the file.

“One of the emerging trends in fraud in T&T is that of fraud associated with real estate and the purchase of lands—the purchase of property,” he said outside the San Fernando Police Administration building,.

“Victims would have reported to the fraud office that they would have taken out huge mortgages, they would have taken their life time savings and invested it in real estate and subsequently they lost everything.

“At the fraud office, we are very concerned with this trend that is growing in T&T. This investigation resulted in the arrest of an attorney at law.”

Dookie said he hopes the arrest will send a message to people who conduct land transactions to do so in accordance with the law.

“I hope it will also send a message that regardless of your status in society, if you do not conform to the rule of law, we at the TTPS fraud office will be enforcing the rule of law,” he said.

He said one of the irregularities Fraud Squad investigators see in land deals gone bad was identity theft.

“For example, they would steal the owner’s name and they will prepare fraudulent identification, fraudulent utility bills in the name of the true owner and they will represent themselves as the true owner, so when the transaction is done, you are paying not the true owner of the land who holds the title but the fraudster.”

Dookie said for citizens to recover those lost funds, they must take civil action or initiate criminal investigations that often result in punitive sentences.

“My advice to citizens who intend to purchase land is that they engage the service of a reputable attorney with experience in real estate, that they ensure the necessary checks are made at the Registrar General’s office to ensure the title is a good title,” Dookie said.

“If the purchase is linked to Caroni lands, we strongly advise the purchaser to visit Brechin Castle in Central to verify the authenticity of title for Caroni Lands.

“We also advise persons to visit the Inland Revenue department and check the history of who was paying the land and building taxes, so you could get an idea of who the true owner is.”

Homicide officers yesterday found the charred remains and piece of a skull in a latrine (outhouse) at the back of a dilapidated wooden house at Black Street, Reform Village, Gasparillo.

The remains are believed to be that of missing 52-year-old Deoraj Bedassie, who was last seen on his birthday on March 26.

However, investigating officers have requested DNA swabs from siblings. This will be used to match DNA extracted from the bones found to determine if the remains are Bedassie. Shortly after 11 am yesterday, Homicide officers called in a sewer truck to a neighbour’s yard to pump out a latrine and a nearby cesspit in search of Bedassie’s body. The officers said they were acting on information they received during their investigations.

Crime Scene Investigators and other officials searched the latrine and found the charred skeletal remains. The officers also found a huge piece of bone believed to be a skull. Officers said they believed the body was burned next to the latrine and the remains dumped in it. The remains were found just after 1 pm and were viewed by the District Medical Officer, bagged and sent to the Forensic Science Centre in St James.

When news spread that the bones were found, ear-piercing screams of anguish rang out from close relatives, including Bedassie’s two sisters – Doolin and Monica Lochan.

“Why did they have to kill my brother like that? He never did anything so wrong and always kept to himself. He didn’t deserve to die like that,” Monica said. Monica described her brother as a joyous but quiet person.

On Monday night, officers of the Anti-Kidnapping Squad and Homicide Bureau (South) detained a 24-year-old Barrackpore man for questioning.

The missing person’s report was only made at the Gasparillo Police Station on Sunday, by relatives who noticed bloodstains all over the walls and pillars in the verandah of his house. On the night of his birthday, Bedassie reportedly had a confrontation with a 24-year-old man and he was subsequently badly beaten, neighbours and relatives who witnessed the incident told the T&T Guardian.

Bedassie, who was never married and had no children, was not missed from the area until Sunday by one of his nieces, who began to enquire about his whereabouts.

Speaking with the T&T Guardian, Bedassie’s niece, Shivanie Nickchadee, said she knew her uncle was badly beaten by a man well known to them and who lived nearby. She admitted she did not see him around the day after his birthday but thought he had gone to one of his siblings’ home to spend a few days.

On Monday, AKS officers interviewed neighbours and close relatives. Later that night, another team of police cordoned off the area and officers stood guard overnight.

Bedassie is a former Caroni 1975 Limited worker and had acquired two acres of agricultural lands and a residential plot. He recently sold the lands and was receiving payments in parts.

Preliminary investigations revealed Bedassie may have been robbed and beaten. He reportedly had $29,000 on him the day he went missing. Investigating officers said a motive is yet to be established, but believe the suspect they had in custody will be able to help them.

A social media video of a man claiming to be a police officer and hiding out in Canada because he fears for his life, is now engaging the attention of the head of the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) David West.

In the video, which went viral yesterday, the man, who identifies himself as Allan Gillman, said he allegedly received threats on his life from several police officers, including high-ranking officers.

The male voice in the six minute-57 second video shows a ransacked room with documents scattered all over the floor and bed.

The man claims he has been a police officer for the past 19 years and even shows what appears to be an authentic police badge.

The man claims because of an incident (which he did not mention in further details) he was forced to run for his life to Canada. He added that there was an order to execute him and several officers in the police service were behind it.

According to the man, they include officers assigned to the North Eastern Task Force and the High Performance Team, a unit which operates out of the North Eastern Division.

The man said he was forced to flee to Canada on September 22, 2012.

“It took plenty courage to come out now and make these videos. I don’t want to do it but I consulted with a lawyer in Canada. This is the state of my bedroom, there are TTPS documents of events. I don’t want to reveal as it is sensitive and national security oriented,” the male voice was heard saying in the video.

He added that it was his first video after four-and-a-half years “of hiding in Canada from the officers mentioned.”

The man claims that he has documented information on several reports he made to the PCA on numerous occasions.

“I made complaints against these officers and that I am fearful for my life since 2009 to 2012 when I left T&T in a rush to my safety in Canada,” he said.

The man called on Minister of National Security Edmund Dillon and Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley to look into the matter and “have it fixed before he goes public.”

“I hope this reach you guys and you understand the seriousness in my voice,” the man said.

When contacted yesterday for comment, West admitted that he had seen the video and was looking into it. West, however, did not want to comment further and did not confirm or deny whether he will meet with the officers whose names were called in the video.

President of the TTPS Social and Welfare Association, Michael Seales, told the T&T Guardian that some of the officers who were named had already contacted him on it.

However, he added that he was yet to meet with them to discuss it further.

Efforts to reach acting Commissioner of Police Stephen Williams or Minister Dillon for comment yesterday were unsuccessful, as all calls to their phones went unanswered. 

Management of the Police’s Central Division is being strengthened via creation of an Assistant Commissioner of Police (Central) who will ensure the area receives “more focused attention” says National Security Minister Edmund Dillon.

Speaking in the Senate yesterday, Dillon explained,

“In this new arrangement, the Central Division receives more focused attention as it’s grouped with one other division. This is opposed to the original arrangement of (Central) being one of the three divisions forming Region South.”

Dillon was replying to questions from Opposition Senator Wade Mark who sought information on measures to address lack of resources being experienced by Central Division officers.

Apart from detailing resources, Dillon said attention has also been placed on strengthening Central Division’s managerial capacity. Previously, the division was supervised by a Senior Superintendent. The ACP (Central) portfolio will now be held by an executive ACP officer, overseeing the division.

Following recent upsurge of violence in Enterprise particularly, Dillon said additional resources have been assigned to bolster operational strength there.

He said soldiers and police from the Rapid Response Unit, Inter-Agency Task Force and Guard and Emergency Branch (GEB) have been deployed to increase law enforcement visibility and responsiveness in Enterprise. Increased foot and mobile patrols are also being conducted.

Dillon said officers at Central Division stations are “well equipped” with requisite protective gear including bullet proof vests, firearms, ammunition and vehicles.

“The human and material resources are deemed sufficient at this time to address the current challenges. Should circumstances change, immediate steps will be taken to address any identified shortfalls.”

Asked if resources would be long term, Dillon said, “As the situation determines..”

He couldn’t put a time frame on when tenders will be issued for the promised police station at Enterprise,”But it would be constructed in the shortest possible time.”

Mark asked if armoured personnel carriers would be purchased to protect officers from criminals’ sophisticated “firepower” being seen on social media.

Dillon said, “The Police Service is well equipped to deal with any eventuality presently.”

Mark grilled Trade Minister Paula Gopee- Scoon on how Government intends to convince business investors T&T is safe. Gopee- Scoon, who said T&T “is and always will be attractive” to investors, detailed incentives.

Gopee-Scoon said she couldn’t link any decline in Southern business with murders and didn’t believe Mark’s statements that Southern business people want to close on Saturdays due to crime. He noted Southern Business Association president Daphne Bartlette spoke of the issues recently. Gopee-Scoon said she was aware of Bartlette’s view but didn’t think it applied to all business groups.

Energy Minister Franklin Khan returned to the Senate yesterday saying he was standing by the grace of God. Khan was away from work for three months after falling ill, ironically, while on holiday in Thailand last December.

As he commenced his contribution to yesterday’s Senate debate on a Government motion to provide for T&T’s membership in the Andean Development Corporation and for the raising of loans from the bank, Khan said he wanted to thank all, including ordinary citizens of this country for their support during his illness.

Khan said while abroad with his wife he “became gravely ill” and “was hospitalised for 12 days because of a cardiac event.” He said on his return home, further tests were done and revealed that he needed immediate by-pass surgery, which was done on January 9 in T&T.

“After three months, here am I standing by the grace of God,” he added to desk-thumping from all senators. He said he was cleared by his doctors to return to work since last month but on the instructions of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, he took a further two weeks leave.

Khan thanked the PM, his doctors, wife and family and Cabinet colleagues and ordinary citizens for their support . He said the health system in Thailand was first class and he was happy to have successfully had surgery in T&T.

Opposition and Independent Senators welcomed Khan back to the Senate after his absence.

Under the legislation, when approved, Government will be able to borrow millions for development projects in the country.

Khan dismissed claims by Independent Senator Taurel Shrikissoon that further borrowing could increase the country debt. Khan said the Government would manage the economy prudently. He said the greatest problem facing the energy sector was the issue of gas curtailment. Khan said he intends to do all he can to ensure the country’s oil and gas production are increased in the shortest possible time.

He said from next week he will meet with oil producing companies to ensure oil production be increased to 100,000 barrels a day in T&T.

Khan said he will be meeting with BP, Parenco Oil and Gas, which now owns Repsol .

Opposition Senator Gerald Ramdeen, in his contribution, raised a concern involving the former Repsol and Mora Holding Ltd. He read a letter written to the permanent secretary in the Energy Ministry

He said the local company had over 200 million barrels “of oil off the east coast that Repsol is taking advantage of.” He said that matter was also told to the former energy minister . He said the request for measures to be taken to prevent Repsol from seeking to “stifle the development of the (local) company.” Khan later told the Senate that he was recently made aware of the matter and would address it shortly.

Retired deputy commissioner of police Mervyn Richardson was yesterday forced to defend his investigation of an alleged plot to assassinate former prime minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and some of her Cabinet ministers in 2011. Close to a dozen suspects were detained before eventually being released without charge.

In the case before Justice Vasheist Kokaram in the Port-of-Spain High Court, Richardson was grilled by attorneys for one of the detainees, Anton “Boombay” Boney, who is suing the State for false imprisonment after he was detained for more than a week almost five years ago.

Richardson was asked about an intelligence report which detailed the plot and identified suspects.

However, he could not give the exact date he received the report, or the date the alleged plot was supposed to take place.

Boney’s lawyer, Lee Merry, asked why Richardson did not provide the report or details of the plot in his witness statement in the lawsuit.

He replied: “Thank God we acted in the way we did so T&T is a better place today.” Richardson also denied Merry’s claim that Boney was arrested to provide information on criminal activity in his community, not because he was suspected in the plot.

“We had cogent and compelling intelligence before us that something bad was going to happen in T&T and we need to act,” he said.

Boney is the only one of the detainees to take action against the State for false imprisonment and the only one not held by a detention order under that year’s State of Emergency (SoE).

The order empowered the Minister of National Security to allow extended detentions without charge for persons likely to cause disorder during the SoE.

Merry challenged Richardson’s claims that Boney and the other suspects were arrested as a preventative measure.

He noted that the alleged plot was supposed to be executed on November 24 but his client was arrested four days later.

“We still held the view that if we did not continue the investigation and take the precautions we did there was still likely to be situations that would be injurious to the citizens of T&T,” Richardson said.

He briefly suggested that he had received additional intelligence that foreign nationals from the Middle East would be travelling to T&T to participate.

Asked why the alleged plot was announced by Government before all the suspects were arrested, Richardson said he was not consulted. “I am a police officer not a politician. I was not briefed,” he said.

Richardson also admitted that he did not investigate claims by then Opposition Leader and current Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, who at the time said he was in possession of a security report which stated that the plot was a hoax.

Boney, of John John, Laventille, was in court for yesterday’s hearing and sat silently among a group of police officers in the prisoners’ enclosure.

He has been on remand since being charged with conspiring to murder a man and the attempted murder of another in 2014.

Boney is also facing charges for being a gang leader. The case is expected to continue this afternoon, when attorneys for both since will give their final legal submissions.

He is also being represented by Kelston Pope.

Jamaat-al-Muslimeen leader Yasin Abu Bakr’s case for refusing to testify before the Commission of Enquiry appointed to investigate the 1990 attempted coup, took an unexpected turn yesterday with Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Roger Gaspard being called upon to discontinue the private criminal case.

Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar was expected to decide on Bakr’s innocence or guilt during a hearing in the Port-of-Spain Magistrates’ Court yesterday morning, but when the case was called Bakr’s attorney Wayne Sturge indicated that he had written to Gaspard over the commission’s ability to prosecute his client.

In the two page letter, which was read in court, Sturge noted that Gaspard had previously appeared before the commission in 2012, to explain that Bakr was not able to testify before it because of potential pre-trial publicity for his then upcoming trial for sedition.

Bakr was again summoned after that trial ended in a hung jury with Bakr being ordered to be retired.

Sturge pointed out that Gaspard had made similar submissions to the Commission of Enquiry into the collapse of CL Financial, with that commission agreeing not to call witness cited by Gaspard.

He also noted that Gaspard had refused the Coup Commission’s request for his office to prosecute Bakr for failing to appear, before it opted to file the private criminal charge.

“In all the circumstances outlined, I hereby invite you, within 14 days of the receipt of this letter, to intervene and discontinue the proceedings herein,” Sturge said as he called on Gaspard to exercise his power under Section 90 of the Constitution.

Ayers-Caesar adjourned the case to April 19, when Gaspard is expected to respond to the request.

The COE’s secretary filed the private complaint against Bakr in January last year, after he failed to attend a scheduled hearing.

If Gaspard declines and Bakr is convicted of the complaint he will be liable to a $2,000 fine.

However, he can no longer be served with another summons as the Sir David Simmons-chaired commission has completed its evidential hearings and have since published its report.

On July 27, 1990, Bakr led 114 members of his organisation in a co-ordinated attacks on the Parliament and the Trinidad and Tobago Television (TTT) station in his attempt to overthrow the then ruling NAR administration during which 24 people were killed.

Six days later Bakr and his insurgents surrendered.

They were tried for treason but the Court of Appeal upheld the amnesty offered to secure their surrender.

The Privy Council later invalidated the amnesty but Bakr and his followers were not rearrested.

Bakr is also being represented by Criston J Williams.

Israel Khan, SC, and Larry Lalla are representing the commission.

Crime and security have been identified as the major challenges hampering free movement between Caricom countries which have resulted in countries being unable to achieve optimum economic growth.

But these issues also have a direct impact on a person’s standard of living.

So said Caricom Secretariat Sherwin Toyne-Stephenson while speaking at the Ministry of National Security’s Citizens Security Programme (CSP) in collaboration with the Caricom Secretariat Seventh Meeting of the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI) Technical Working Group themed, ”Preventing Crime by Focusing on At Risk Youth and Vulnerable Populations” held at Movie Towne Banquet and Conference Centre, Port-of-Spain yesterday.

Zeroing on homicides, he said even though this represented a “minor percentage of all the crimes committed in the region” murders gave rise to citizens’ insecurity within the region.

“Which is probably one of the key measures that prevents persons from feeling safe enough to go out and actually engage in economic activity and that would ultimately affect the standard of living of their countries,” Toyne-Stephenson said.

He urged that crime and security should become pillars of the Caricom community, adding that this must take place among economic activity.

One of the key platforms, Toyne-Stephenson said, was using social media especially to reach youths as often times they felt they were not a part of the solution.

“We are so divorced of the realities that they go through and we don’t take enough time to really sit with them and understand what are some of the challenges that they face,” Toyne-Stephenson said.

He said there must also be sound governance structures to ensure measures were successfully implemented.

“The technical work that we do must not be swept in an undertone by poor governance issues. In addition to dealing with some of the technical aspects of youth involvement in crime we also need to keep clear in our minds what our own governance issues are,” Toyne-Stephenson said.

Lydia Jacobs, permanent secretary in the National Security Ministry, who also spoke, said T&T’s Juvenile Court Project which is currently being implemented, would address the issues facing youth.

She said there were three components of the JCP, which included the Children Court, Peer Resolution and Public Education and Communications.

“The successful implementation of these three areas is expected to address the deficiencies in the current juvenile justice system and hopefully stem the increased rate of recidivism by children for serious crimes,” Jacobs said.

She said this country’s criminal justice system was largely based on a punitive approach, adding that this failed to deter children who were caught in the “system” from a life of crime.

The JCP, Jacobs said, therefore aimed to strengthen the capacity of the judiciary to deal with matters relating to children using a rehabilitative, restorative and less retributive approach.

“Youth violence and victimisation represent special areas of concern with respect to public safety. The ordinary observer can recognise that over the years, the age of criminals, particularly those engaged in violent crime, has been steadily decreasing, and that there has also been an increase in crime and violence within the school system.

“However, it is clear that youth misbehaviour, school crime and violence are more than mere deficiencies in the educational system,” Jacobs added.

Prayer can move mountains but not, apparently, Finance Minister Colm Imbert.

According to a newspaper report last week, the head of the Inter-Religious Organisation (IRO) Brother Harrypersad Maharaj, as he is known to his siblings, said: “I spoke to the Finance Minister some time ago and he told me ‘Don’t worry, I will give you more than the last government’. But I didn’t know that more really meant less or none.” Luckily, Maharaj didn’t go on to list the sundry other things he didn’t know or else there might have been no space left in the paper.

Maharaj revealed that the IRO has been getting $250,000 annually for the past three years. What did the religious leaders spend this three-quarter of a million dollars on?

“We have programmes for the youth, child development, parenting, counselling and women development,” Maharaj said. All of which, obviously, are essential for an organisation which supports the marriage of 12- and 14-year-old girls.

But the puzzle here is why the PNM administration hasn’t given the IRO a subvention. After all, religions have always been a traditional source of votes, since politicians don’t have to actually present any valid policy arguments to believers to get their support.

All the politicians have to do is say, homosexuality is an abomination, abortion is murder, hang criminals, and no I don’t eat pork or beef or shrimp.

But it may be that, in these parlous economic times, Mr Imbert is worried about Pascal’s Wager.

You see, back in the 17th century, French mathematician Blaise Pascal argued that it was statistically logical to believe in God since, if you were wrong, you would lose nothing and, if you were right, you would go to Heaven.

But Pascal proffered his bet at a time and place when only the Christian god was real. But, in today’s sinful world, there are over 4,200 gods to worship.

And, if the Government gives money to the wrong god, T&T might be hit by a natural disaster which we can ill afford. After all, pastors assure us that homosexuals have already caused oil prices to collapse.

Mr Imbert’s challenge, therefore, is to figure out which God is a true Trini. But it seems he has been too busy pointing out political commentator Michael Harris’s poor grasp of financial statistics to devote any time to this.

This is why I have decided to help out the Finance Minister today since, although I am an atheist, I will be just as dead as any believer should an earthquake hit Trinidad.

The first test we can apply is, of course, faith. No matter what religion a believer belongs to, they all agree that believing in things for which there is no evidence or, even better, evidence against, is the basis of faith.

Given this, anyone who takes out insurance is declaring that they lack faith in God to protect them against ill fortune.

By this measure, according to the Central Statistical Office, Roman Catholics are the least faithful, since 25 per cent of them have insurance, whereas Shouter Baptists have the strongest faith in God, since only nine per cent of them have insurance.

Of course, one indicator is not sufficient to establish the one true God. We also have to look at who is not following God’s laws, since the real God would probably not let His adherents be disobedient.

And, obviously, the best measure of this would be how many people are doing what believers call “living in sin.”

Here the same Shouter Baptists fall short, since according to the Central Statistical Office, 22 per cent of them are in common-law relationships as compared to about 12 per cent of the other faiths.

Indeed, only people with no religion come close, since 21 per cent of them are also shacked up.

On the other hand, when we look at people who don’t have any chronic illnesses, suggesting that God has granted them good health, 83 per cent of non-believers are hale and hearty, followed by Pentecostals and Seventh-Day Adventists at 81 per cent.

But, since there are only 29,000 non-believers and 54,000 Adventists in T&T, Mr Imbert might be well advised to give money to the born-agains who constitute 159,000 of the population.

However, if YHWH isn’t the real God, this money will be wasted. And it is here that we come to the real measure of God’s grace: money.

Because, obviously, the religion which has the highest proportion of wealthy people is the one which the true Trini God favours.

Here, less than half of one per cent of all believers earn over $13,000 a month. But, of those people who don’t follow any religion, 1.3 per cent earn more than this. Which means that, in not giving the IRO a red cent, Mr Imbert has indeed avoided the wrath of God.

KEVIN BALDEOSINGH is a professional writer, author of three novels, and co-author of a Caribbean history textbook.