C&W Communications, the parent company of Flow and C&W Business, has offered voluntary separation of employment packages to scores of workers.

According to a statement issued yesterday, the company said it is currently implementing a transformation initiative “aimed at streamlining its operations and ensuring business viability in the medium to long terms.”

“Part of that programme involves the company offering a voluntary separation of employment to employees,” it added, without indicating the exact number of employees affected.

The initiative was announced to staff yesterday by Ian Serrao, managing director of Flow Trinidad. Serrao said they had to find ways to respond to the contracting economy, increased competition and to ensure viability of its business in the current environment.

“Earlier this year, the company embarked on a programme of cost reduction in an effort to save jobs, but has had to make the difficult decision of reducing head count,” Serrao said.

He added that the company would put all in place to support the employees who opt to transition out of the business.

“We remain prudent in the management of our business and will deal with our employees fairly and respectfully,” Serrao said.

Speaking with the T&T Guardian yesterday under strict anonymity, an employee said the move had “hit them hard like a lightening bolt.”

“We were very afraid that this day was coming and now we have to go home, but what will we do? We have our families to see about, our young children, mortgages to pay, loans to pay, medical bills and other daily expenses to keep up with, some of us are renting also. We have worked for ten years, some of us, and this what they offering is not fair enough,” the employee said.

The T&T Guardian understands that just over one month ago, the company’s situation and the possibility of lay-offs was discussed with employees at an emergency meeting held by Serrao.

“Mr Serrao spoke at length to maybe 1000 of us who were called to the meeting last minute. We were told then that this was the step that the company was taking and that it was joining forces with Liberty Global on its way forward,” a source close to the situation said.

Some workers were laid off following that meeting.

C&W is a full-service communications and entertainment provider and delivers market-leading video, broadband, telephony and mobile services to consumers in 18 countries. It also operates the most extensive state-of-the-art submarine fibre network in the region.

A 32-year-old pie vendor of Mustapha Lane, El Socorro, was denied bail yesterday when he appeared in court facing six charges including kidnapping a courier attached to the Chinese Embassy.

Quacy Bowen represented himself when he appeared before Senior Magistrate Nannette Forde-John charged with kidnapping Si Jiu Zhang on July 13 while armed with a gun and five other charges.

He also is accused of stealing from Zhang $1,350 and an iPhone. He is also accused of being in possession of a Glock 19 pistol and 16 rounds of ammunition. The other charges read claimed that on July 8, Bowen, while armed, took and unlawfully carried away Yizhao Duo and robbed him of his Honda City motorcar valued at $140,000.

Zhang was reportedly snatched while on is way to work at St Clair and rescued hours later near One Woodbrook Place, by police.

The charges were laid by Corporals Shurland George and Kevin Fenton of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit and Sean Bess of the Stolen Vehicle Squad.

Bowen told Forde-John that he was a man of limited funds needed his money to retain an attorney. He added that he was presumed innocent and therefore entitled to bail since the allegations are all bailable offences. Bowen requested that he be granted “reasonable bail”.

Forde-John denied bail on the basis that he had a pending matter from March last year where he is accused of assaulting someone with a weapon and now charged with other offences, using a deadlier weapon, and he also has a pending sexual offence matter.

The matter was adjourned to today after there was a discrepancy in a 2010 case where he is alleged to have stolen a vehicle. Bowen claims that he was ordered to pay a fine while the court records showed that the matter was pending.

Eight days after the semi-nude body of a woman was found near a drain in Point Fortin with her head bashed in, a mason has appeared in court for her murder.

Wesley Taylor, 37, appeared before Point Fortin Senior Magistrate Rajendra Rambachan who read the charge to him that he allegedly murdered Kellyann Shane, 23, on July 11 at Guapo Cap-de-Village Main Road, Point Fortin. Police had previously identified the victim as Shelly Ann Clarke.

The magistrate explained to him that murder is not a bailable offence. Shane, a mother of one, of Warden Road, Point Fortin, was found dead near a hardware with severe injuries to her head and face. She was only wearing a shirt.

A piece of wood found next to her body is believed to be the murder weapon. An autopsy revealed she was beaten to death. The police arrested Taylor, of Fanny Village, Point Fortin last Friday and received instructions from Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Joan Honore-Paul on Tuesday to charge him.

He was subsequently charged by Cpl Stephen Forbes of the Homicide Bureau of Investigations 3. The accused was represented by attorney Sandra Soobransingh who held for attorney Alvin Pariagsingh.  

First Court prosecutor Sgt Sparkle Paul said a State attorney has not yet been assigned to the case.

The matter was adjourned to August 15.

Despite Opposition objections, Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi hasn’t thrown out the Summary Courts and Preliminary Inquiries legislation as possible solutions concerning the 53 incomplete cases left by former chief magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar.

That’s because amendments to the legislation could require only Government’s (simple majority) votes for passage in Parliament.

Al-Rawi detailed the scenario yesterday, confirming he’s now pressing ahead seeking feedback from the judiciary and Director of Public Prosecutions on draft amendments to both pieces of legislation. These will apply to general matters where a magistrate is absent for any reason.

The move follows Tuesday’s meeting between Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who discussed the two pieces of legislation as possible solutions to the 53 cases stalled after Ayers-Caesar’s elevation to the High Court. (See page A8)

The Opposition declined to support the legislative solutions which were taken to Rowley by the AG. They had emanated from the Director of Public Prosecutions. The Opposition felt use of the legislation would “create more problems,” including where the DPP’s intervention was concerned.

On the Opposition’s suggestion of using Section 137 to convene a tribunal, Rowley said he wasn’t going to advise himself on that and wouldn’t say more for “the moment.”

While Al-Rawi said Tuesday’s meeting was very fruitful and Government was grateful for sharing of Opposition views, he said it wasn’t necessarily that Opposition advice was an absolute requirement. He said the meeting’s agenda focused on several issues where a constitutional majority - and vote - was required for amendments - such as the Tobago issue, police commissioner’s appointment and the operation of service commissions.

“Such pieces of legislation require a three quarters majority vote in the House of Representatives and two thirds vote in the Senate. But discussion on the Judicial and Legal Services issue (Ayers-Caesar cases) doesn’t involve special majority bills,” Al-Rawi said yesterday.

“It’s in fact a simple majority approach. (So) the Opposition’s view wasn’t conclusion of the matter. Very often they disagree on a position and we still proceed.”

Al-Rawi said the Opposition reportedly focused on appointment of a tribunal via Section 137 (of the Constitution), “but most respectfully, the two issues can be separated. Government is proposing and receiving advice about treating with the general circumstances of people who find themselves in a position where a matter cannot continue to be heard - therefore we propose these amendments to the Summary Courts and Preliminary Inquiries acts.”

He added: “I’ve been in communication with the DPP’s office and office of the Chief Justice for the last few months on this. Obviously, care is required in observing the separation of powers and DPP’s constitutional independence. In the circumstances, I invited and received from the DPP such recommendations to amend the SC and PI acts.”

Al-Rawi is now going to write to other stakeholders - judiciary, Law Association - to comment on draft recommendations for the legislation his ministry has worked out.

“After feedback is received, I’ll advise the Prime Minister and take the matter to Cabinet, which will decide whether we approach Parliament to debate appropriate legislation. So we haven’t hit a dead end due to the Opposition’s view.”

Section 137 wont solve MARCIA CASE FIASCO — Mendes

Using Section 137 of the Constitution to invoke a tribunal to investigate the Marcia Ayers- Caesar issue and remove the Chief Justice won’t resolve the issue of the 53 cases left incomplete, says Law Association President Douglas Mendes.

The cases will still have to be dealt with by those presiding over them, he added yesterday.

“It’s either they continue where they left off, if possible and fair, or if not start over again. Section 137 won’t solve the problem of the cases. They’re outstanding and have to be dealt with.”

Section 137 (4) of the Constitution states: “Where the question of removing a judge from office has been referred to a tribunal under sub-section (3), the President, acting in accordance with the advice of the Prime Minister in the case of the Chief Justice, or the Chief Justice in the case of a judge other than the Chief Justice, may suspend the judge from performing the functions of his office, and any such suspension may at any time be revoked by the President, acting in accordance with the advice of the Prime Minister, in the case of the Chief Justice, or the Chief Justice in the case of a judge other than the Chief Justice, and shall in any case cease to have effect.”

Opposition senator Gerald Ramdeen is still in favour of a tribunal.

“This tribunal will answer all queries in this - what took place regarding Ayers-Caesar’s appointment, etc. The direction forward for the 53 cases will fall into place as a result of the clarifications.”

But Mendes said the stakeholders - DPP, judiciary and members of the bar representing the clients in relation to each case - will have to decide how to go forward.

“When one of the cases comes up the stakeholders may have to have talks on how to go forward, so it’s better to start hearing the cases and move on.”

Courts go on vacation at month-end.

On the Opposition’s tribunal call, Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi said proposed litigation on the matter from Ayers-Caesar’s attorney - who recently issued a pre-action protocol letter - will provide full disclosure on the matter.

“It’s bound to be resolved in full form. Details will have to come out as the matter traverses the courts.”

Fake erectile dysfunction drug Viagra and birth control pill are among the growing list of bogus pharmaceuticals which are now popular in T&T.

This was revealed by Dave Cording, Crime Stoppers International consultant, at the launch of the organisation’s Illicit Trade Project held at the T&T Chamber of Industry and Commerce at Westmoorings yesterday.

Cording said among the five bogus items being peddled in the Caribbean were tobacco, pharmaceuticals, alcohol, clothing and fuel.

In T&T the illicit trade of cigarettes has been on the increase since 2015, with this now accounting for 20 per cent of the market as just over a billion illicit cigarette sticks enter this country’s market annually, Cording said.

Describing the illicit trade as a “significant issue which needs to be tackled collectively,” he said.

“What’s inside the Viagra isn’t necessarily going to give you your desire and they harm you in the long term. I know of a slimming pill that was taken and the individual here, in T&T, instead spent eight days in the hospital.

“This is organised crime. It isn’t just some entrepreneurial individual down the road.”

Cording said simultaneously legitimate businesses were being undermined and consumers in affected countries were exposed to unregulated, poorly made, inferior quality products which resulted in serious negative health effects.

He said raising prices was not necessarily the answer as this could simply push the consumer “more” towards the fake product.

Cording said he was particularly heartened that members of the Joint Select Committee (JSC) on National Security visited the Port of Port-of-Spain last Friday and were “deeply concerned” as to why an electronic scanner commissioned since 2014 was not being used.

Cording, who said one of the “great sources” of illicit goods was via shipping containers, added, “It would be nice to see those scanners in use.”

Director of Crime Stoppers Darren Carmichael said Crime Stoppers International has recognised that illicit trade was an international problem that was funding major criminal activity worldwide.

Two senior attorneys are expressing different views as to whether legislative changes is the solution to solve the issue regarding the 53 part-heard matters left hanging after the resignation of former Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar.

But they both agree that the police need to investigate whether there was evidence to support a criminal case of misbehaviour in public office in the current impasse involving Chief Justice Ivor Archie and the former Chief Magistrate.

And there is now confirmation that the attorney for Ayers-Caesar will soon file legal action against the Chief Justice Ivor Archie as head of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission (JLSC) challenging her subsequent resignation as a High Court judge.

Having already sent a pre-action protocol letter in June, former attorney general Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj said he had until July 26, to file the legal action and will be doing so “in the next few days.”

Ayers-Caesar was elevated to the High Court on April 12 but was forced to resign less than two weeks later after prisoners rioted, complaining that she had left their matters unfinished. Some of the prisoners have been in prison for over seven years awaiting trial on charges including murder.

The JLSC had virtually accused Ayers-Caesar of lying to them on the issue of her part-heard matters. Those 53 matters remain in abeyance because no solution has been found on how to move forward.

A suggestion put by the Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley to Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar for a legislative fix to address the issue was rejected on Tuesday. Persad-Bissessar instead suggested a solution could be found under section 137 of the Constitution which speaks to the setting up of a Tribunal to investigate the conduct of the Chief Justice.

Head of the Criminal Bar Association Pamela Elder, SC, told the T&T Guardian that she does not agree that a legislative solution does not have merit. She said the legislative change required is “procedural rather than substantive.”

But her colleague at the criminal bar Israel Khan, SC, is cautioning against fixing the problem via legislative change saying it may have legal repercussions.

Elder said a solution has to be found because “persons are becoming more and more frustrated. This shows the judicial helplessness and hopelessness and there is a sense of despair.”

Elder noted that while the Criminal Procedure Rules imposes sanctions on attorneys who don’t file documents on time “what are the sanctions for the people responsible for the suffering and misery being created by the Marcia mess?”

Khan agreed with Elder that a police investigation must begin into the matter involving Ayers-Caesar and CJ Archie.

Khan said “somebody is lying and the police must investigate the matter so we can get the truth.”

It is only when the police investigation is completed, he said, there may be grounds for a tribunal. “The Prime Minister would be irresponsible to set up a tribunal at this time. You must first have an investigation and if it is found that the CJ is lying then they should move to impeach but an investigation must be done.”

Khan did not support legislative change saying “the legislature should not interfere since there would be pending litigation.”

He said he would endorse what Persad-Bissessar said that the “53 may file constitutional motions or file for judicial review of their matters.”

Eyewitnesses to the fiery attempted murder and suicide at Eighth Street, Arouca, said yesterday that the victim and attacker never showed any signs of a failing relationship.

Speaking with Guardian Media yesterday, one neighbour who identified himself only as “Green,” said he spoke with 52-year-old Clifford Samuel as he lay on the ground suffering from burns about the body on Tuesday evening.

Samuel was doused with a flammable substance and then set ablaze by his lover, Anika La Rosa. The couple’s wooden home was also set on fire and two other nearby houses also caught fire.

Green said Samuel told him while he was lying in bed he felt himself being doused and then felt the flames. As he ran out the house screaming, Green recounted that Samuel claimed he saw La Rosa dousing herself before she set herself ablaze.

“She light meh afire and light she self afire!” Green recalled were the words said by Samuel, adding that when he heard that he tried searching for her in the three-bedroom house but could not find her as the flames were too much for him. 

Green said he never knew the couple to have any falling out prior to the incident, as Samuel told him the two had spent the afternoon together prior to the incident. La Rosa has two children who live with her but they were not home at the time.

His advice to people in relationships was for them to leave if they realise their spouse no longer wished to be with them. He said it was better to leave them and “separate yuhself from a bad relationship”

A relative of Samuel, who did not want to be identified, said the man had planned to go Tobago to “cool his head” after learning La Rosa was being unfaithful, adding the woman’s other lover was also threatening Samuel. He added that the threat of him leaving her might have triggered the act.

Neighbours said they saw La Rosa going home Tuesday with a bottle of flammable liquid, but were unsure if it was kerosene or gasoline. They claimed to have heard some commotion in the house prior to the attack, but thought the couple was “play fighting.” After an explosion, they heard the screams and saw Samuel running out.

Green said when he spoke with relatives of Samuel at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mt Hope, yesterday, they said doctors informed them he may not make it. 

WALTER ALIBEY & ROSEMARIE SANT

Eight senior managers of the Sports Company of T&T (SporTT) were yesterday sent on 45 days administrative leave pending the completion of a forensic audit investigation of the operations of the entity.

SporTT, which is led by recently appointed chairman Dinanath Ramnarine, also revoked the appointment of board director Jason Julien.

Guardian Media Sports was informed by a source close to the development that CEO Adam Montserin, head of Facilities Anthony Blake, head of Procurement Darrel Stewart, head of Internal Audit Joanne Kowlessar, head of Legal Navin Maharaj, Senior Manager in the Project Department Travis Smith, a senior manager and a senior project administrator were all sent on immediate administrative leave with pay. Three managers, when contacted yesterday, said they could not explain the reason for the suspensions.

However, a release from the SporTT said the board, acting on the advice of the Ministry of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs, would be undertaking a forensic investigation into the operations of the company. It said to facilitate this, eight employees were asked to proceed on administrative leave effective July 19 while the appointment of one board member was revoked.

Ramnarine could not be reached for comment yesterday.

But in giving an account of what transpired yesterday, one manager, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, said: “We went to work as on any other day and were asked to attend a meeting. No reason was given, but we were just asked to go on leave until a forensic investigation was done.”

The manager said it was possible the the non-payment of maintenance fees to the Shanghai Construction Group in April may have been one of the reasons for the probe.

Guardian Media Sports learnt that the Shanghai group receives a whopping $1.4 million monthly for maintenance work on the facilities they constructed, namely the National Cycling and Aquatic Centres in Couva and the National Racquet Centre in Tacarigua. However, they have not been paid for the past few months due to lack of funding. Its last payment was $2.5 million in December last year

According to the manager, board members were “pressured to make the payment recently although monies have been scarce, as the company had received no funding from the Ministry of Finance, which had been public knowledge.” Apart from no funding being available, the company found that there were fundamental issues concerning the actual maintenance work being done on the facilities. Now, it “seems everyone who was involved with the the Shanghai Group was sent on leave,” the manager explained.

Money, legal issues plague body

Guardian Media Sports was also informed by a reliable source that at the start of July, the board, which comprises Imran Jan, Dionne Ligoure, Richard Mc Farlane, Vyash Nandlal, Phillip Whiteman, the step-father of cycling ace Njisane Phillip, and which is led by Ramnarine, also took a decision to take control of the day-to-day management of the company.

The source said: “What the board has done is bestowed upon itself executive powers which it doesn’t have and which is contrary to the Companies Act of 1995, the state enterprises performance and monitoring manual and good and proper corporate governance practices.”

Well-placed sources added that since Ramnarine took up office in May, SporTT has been facing many challenges, including a severe funding deficit between TT$35-TT$40 million, and they have been forced to put “mechanisms in place to deal with this.”

But how did the company get to that point?

According to our source, “there are major issues at the company. We inherited a number of problems, including financial and several legal matters. We recognised there is a need to manage the business in a better way.”

Sources at the company also said it has been plagued by a lack of transparency in the way business was done, “including in the procurement process, and within the past few weeks a finance committee had been reviewing any payments being made, making sure that payments were justified and that there was proper documentation for all payments, something which had been lacking.”

Sports Minister Daryl Smith was out of the country and could not be contacted yesterday and calls to Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi’s mobile went unanswered.

SporTT was established in 2004 as a limited liability, special-interest company geared towards the management, administration and programming of sport, as well as the construction and operational maintenance of sporting facilities throughout T&T.

Two of four Bulgarian nationals charged with a combined total of six card skimming offences pleaded guilty to four of the offences and will be sentenced today.

Daniel Nedelchev and Emil Mihalev re-appeared before Port-of-Spain Magistrate Christine Charles yesterday and had hoped to have their matter dealt with, but had to wait another day due to a small hiccup with having their translator in two separate jurisdictions.

Nedelchev and Mihalev are charged with tampering with a Republic Bank Ltd (RBL) automatic banking machine (ABM) in Maraval and for possession of card skimming equipment. The duo had initially pleaded not guilty when they first appeared in court on July 4, but have since changed their pleas.

Nedelchev and Mihalev are accused of maliciously causing $2,092.50 in damage to an RBL machine in Maraval, stealing a keypad from the machine valued at $1,575 and for being in possession of bank card skimming equipment. The incident allegedly occurred on June 25 and the men were arrested the following day at a guest house in St Ann’s.

The duo’s court appearance came less than a week after Dimitar Georgiev, 47, and Toncho Tonchev, 22, appeared in Port-of-Spain on similar charges arising out of a separate incident on June 23 at another RBL ABM at Piarco Plaza.

President of the Media Association of T&T (MATT) Vernon Ramesar says the organisation is expected to meet this weekend to discuss how the Data Protection Act can affect the police investigation involving former investigative journalist Anika Gumbs.

On Monday, police executed a warrant at Gumbs’ St Joseph home and seized her laptop computer, cellphone among other items in pursuit of an investigation involving a conspiracy to pervert the course of public justice.

Contacted yesterday Ramesar described the matter as “sensitive” but said it was among other issues on the agenda affecting journalists to be discussed.

“We would need to analyse it further because it is somewhat sensitive so we haven’t had a chance to meet on it yet,” Ramesar said, adding that MATT would issue a statement soon after this was done.

According to reports, Gumbs’ computer and mobile phone were seized after a team of officers went to her home and executed a search warrant.

It was reported that earlier this year Gumbs met with police and was asked to make her cellphone and computer available to officers but the items were never handed over to police.

It was also reported that Gumbs was interviewed by police regarding allegations levelled against former Attorney General Anand Ramlogan in relation to an allegation of witness tampering.

DCP Harold Phillip is probing an allegation that the former AG contacted David West, now Director of the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) and tried to coerce him to withdraw his statement in a civil lawsuit filed by then Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley.

Ramlogan has denied all allegations.

Police probing the case said a file was expected to be sent to Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Roger Gaspard soon for advice.

Whenever Marcia Ayers-Caesar is seen in public nowadays she is called names and disrespected. She is also shunned by family, friends and former colleagues. As a result of this, Ayers-Caesar now avoids going out in public and attending social events.

Ayers-Caesar made the statements in an affidavit filed in support of her lawsuit against President Anthony Carmona and the Judicial and Legal Services Commission (JLSC) chaired by Chief Justice Ivor Archie.

In her affidavit Ayers-Caesar said she did not want to take legal action against Carmona and the JLSC, but she needed to do so in order to “confront the deceit” which forced her resignation as a High Court judge and to “redress the grave injustice” she has suffered.

On Wednesday, Ayers-Caesar’s attorneys filed legal action in the High Court against the JLSC and the Attorney General representing Carmona.

Ayers-Caesar has sued the JLSC and the Attorney General as a result of what she claims was her forced resignation as a judge on April 27.

“I have and continue to suffer extraordinary distress, anxiety and embarrassment because of the unlawful and unconstitutional actions of the Chief Justice, JLSC and the President and my professional career is in shambles after serving 25 years as a magistrate and being elevated to become a High Court judge of the Supreme Court. I am forced to stay at home,” Ayers-Caesar claimed in her affidavit.

In her affidavit Ayers-Caesar said she is unable to practice law according to Section 54 (1) of Third Schedule of the Code of Ethics of the Legal Profession Act Chapter 90:03 which provides that “a person who previously held a substantive appointment as a judge of the Supreme Court shall not appear as an attorney-at-law in any of the courts in Trinidad and Tobago for a period of ten years commencing on the date of his retirement, resignation or other termination of such an appointment”.

“This means that my professional life in law has come to an end since I cannot practice as an attorney at law for at least ten years. Indeed, my entire professional life has been in the law and I have no other professional training which allows me to earn a living other than the law or the legal profession. I have lost all prospect of promotion as a judge,” Ayers-Caesar stated in her affidavit.

In her affidavit Ayers-Caesar said the actions of the JLSC and Carmona have caused “irreparable damage” to her professional reputation and have brought her into “public ridicule, odium and contempt”.

“I feel disrespected by members of the public,” Ayers-Caesar stated in her affidavit. “I have been called names whenever I am seen in the public such as in the supermarket etc and I am also shunned by family members, friends and colleagues as a result of which I avoid going out in the public and to social events. I feel disrespected by members of the public,” the affidavit stated.

In her affidavit Ayers-Caesar said the situation now is a far cry from the respect and admiration she used to be shown before.

“The damage to me has been incalculable largely because as a former chief magistrate and a recently appointed High Court judge I enjoyed the respect and admiration of not only my colleagues in the Magistracy and on the bench but also of attorneys-at-law including those who did not (whether regularly or at all) appear before me; I also felt that the public supported and respected me,” Ayers-Caesar’s affidavit stated.

“All of this has now gone and although the success of this claim would assist in redressing some of the injustice done to me, my reputation for integrity and public service will never be restored,” she stated in her affidavit. Ayers-Caesar is now seeking among other things “an order for the payment of damages to be assessed for misfeasance in public office and breach of her constitutional rights, including compensation for loss of office and the benefits that go with it if she is not reinstated as a judge as well as an additional award by way of general and vindicatory damages.

Marcia’s salary

As Chief Magistrate Ayers-Caesar received a monthly salary of $32,700 and other allowances inclusive of a $7,740 housing allowance and a $4,200 transportation allowance, the affidavit stated.

As a High Court judge Ayers-Caesar was entitled to a monthly tax free salary of $37,300 plus a personal chauffeur and other allowances inclusive of a $24,000 housing allowance and a $4,560 transportation allowance, the affidavit stated.

“In April and May 2017 I continued to receive a salary equivalent to what I received as Chief Magistrate.

“However, with effect from June 1 I have not received any salary, benefits or allowances save that on July 6 I noticed that the sum of $16,535.99 had been deposited in my account,” Ayers-Caesar stated in the affidavit.

“I made enquiries of the Accounts Department of the Judiciary and I was informed that this represents the difference between what I should have received as a High Court Judge in April and what I had actually received,” she stated in the affidavit. 

Carmona warned me not to do anything stupid like commit suicide—

Marcia’s affidavit

When Ayers-Caesar handed her resignation letter as a High Court judge to Carmona, he warned her “not to do anything stupid like commit suicide”, she stated in her affidavit. He also reminded her that she had children to think of, the affidavit stated.

According to her affidavit Ayers-Caesar said Carmona told her a story of a St Lucian friend he had at the University of the West Indies’ Cave Hill campus that committed suicide.

Carmona has still never come to terms with his friend’s suicide, he told Ayers-Caesar, according to the affidavit.

Both Ayers-Caesar and Carmona were crying when she delivered her resignation letter, she claimed in the affidavit. Carmona hugged Ayers-Caesar, she stated.

The part-heard matters

Ayers-Caesar was sworn in as a High Court judge on April 12.

Before her ascension to the High Court she held the post of chief magistrate after some 25 years in the magistracy.

She is this country’s first female chief magistrate.

On April 10, two days before Ayers-Caesar was sworn in as a judge, Archie called her and asked if she had any part-heard matters.

Ayers-Caesar said on April 11, the Port-of-Spain Magistrates’ Court’s Note Taking Unit provided her with a list of 28 matters, according to the affidavit.

On April 25, Ayers-Caesar was provided with a list of 52 part-heard matters, according to the affidavit.

Ayers-Caesar said these matters could have been dealt with without her having to resign.

According to paragraph 17 of Ayers-Caesar’s lawsuit:

“39 of the 52 part-heard matters were part-heard preliminary enquiries in which the hearings began before a Magistrate could have been completed by another Magistrate in accordance with the procedure for the Magistrate dealing with the preliminary enquiry to call the custodian of the record of the evidence, that is, the Clerk of the Peace to re tender the evidence taken and for any witnesses who gave evidence previously to have the transcript of evidence read to that witness and if so required, that witness could then be asked further questions in examination in chief or cross examination”.

The lawsuit stated this procedure had been used previously to complete preliminary enquiries started by a magistrate who either retired or resigned and were unable to complete those enquiries before their retirement or resignation.

“Another alternative way of dealing with such a problem is for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) pursuant to Section 23(8)(c) of the Indictable Offences (Preliminary Enquiries) Act Chap 12:01 to consider preferring an indictment without the completion of the preliminary enquiry if he determines that there was sufficient evidence to prefer the indictment,” the lawsuit stated.

Archie and the JLSC also had the option of de-rostering her as a judge just to rectify the matters, the lawsuit stated.

On April 27, however, according to the affidavit, Archie told Ayers-Caesar that she should resign as a judge and return to the Magistracy to deal with the matters or the JLSC would advise Carmona to revoke her appointment.

“I was distraught as this was the last thing I had expected the Chief Justice to tell me and I was horrified by what I was hearing since it was clear to me from what the Chief Justice said that a decision had already been made by the JLSC and that I had no choice but to resign as a High Court judge or have my appointment as a High Court judge revoked by the President,” Ayers-Caesar said in her affidavit.

Distraught and in tears

In her affidavit Ayers-Caesar said she was presented with a resignation letter by Archie’s administrative secretary Sherlanne Pierre.

Distraught, Ayers-Caesar said she felt she had no choice but to sign the resignation letter, according to the affidavit.

“While I was in Ms Pierre’s office, I called my husband Matthew Caesar. I was crying on the phone and my husband could not recognise my voice. He asked me to calm down and explain to him what was happening,” Ayers-Caesar said in her affidavit.

In her affidavit Ayers-Caesar also said she messaged her priest, her friend who is a magistrate, and another friend in high public office whose name she did not disclose in the affidavit “so as not to breach confidence”.

“I did not have the benefit of any legal advice before I signed the resignation letter and I was not given the option to have any legal advice,” she said in the affidavit.

At 5.10 pm on April 27, Ayers-Caesar left the Hall of Justice to go to President’s House to tender her resignation, according to the affidavit.

Her husband was already there when she reached, she stated in the affidavit.

“I was in tears and very emotional. The President appeared to be concerned and his tone was a bit subdued. He told me that he was sorry about the way things had turned out,” Ayers-Caesar stated in her affidavit.

“I then told the Chief Justice that at no time did I ever deliberately or intentionally mislead him or the JLSC,” she stated in the affidavit.

In her affidavit Ayers-Caesar said after she handed Carmona her resignation letter she told her husband that she could not face her security detail and requested him to send them home.

On May 3 Ayers-Caesar and her husband Matthew attended a meeting with Archie, according to the affidavit .

“At that meeting my husband asked the Chief Justice if he genuinely believed that I had misled him or lied. The Chief Justice became annoyed and he then told his Administrative Secretary Ms Pierre to take us to the conference room,” the affidavit stated.

“We were accompanied by Ms Pierre to the conference room where she told us that the Chief Justice wanted tempers to be controlled and she told my husband that if he went back to the meeting that he should not say anything,” Ayers-Caesar stated in her affidavit.

On May 19, Ayers-Caesar wrote Carmona putting on record the circumstances surrounding her resignation, according to the affidavit.

On June 16, she issued pre-action protocol letters to the JLSC and the Attorney General calling upon them to advise Carmona to reinstate her as a High Court Judge, the affidavit stated.

On July 7, the Attorney General responded on behalf of the President and JD Sellier & Company responded to the pre action protocol letter on behalf of the JLSC denying Ayers-Caesar’s claims and challenging her allegation of what transpired, the affidavit stated,

Ayers-Caesar is being represented by Senior Counsel Ramesh Lawrence-Maharaj, Ronnie Bissessar and Vijaya Maharaj.

Affidavits by Raphael and Caesar were also filed to support the claim.

Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, SC says he has not received a response from the registrar of the High Court in relation to a reported move by the Judiciary to seal documents filed by former chief magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar against the Judicial Legal Service Commission (JLSC) and the President.

As such, Maharaj said it must be presumed therefore that no application was made to a judge for the proceedings to be sealed and no judge had made any order for the proceedings to be sealed.

On Friday, the media reported that the Judiciary had moved to seal all documents involved in the legal action filed by Ayers-Caesar.

Maharaj said, when questioned, he informed the media that no application to seal the proceedings were served on him or his law firm and the procedure required to seal the proceedings required an application to be made to a judge to seal the proceedings but such an application was not served on his law firm or his client.

Maharaj later wrote the registrar of the Supreme Court requesting confirmation of the media reports and a description of the process used to issue the order and requested a response by 4 PM.

This response was not forthcoming.

Ayers-Caesar initiated legal action against the JLSC and the President in July for the decision to strip her of her position as a High Court judge.

She resigned from the Magistracy in April after being appointed to the High Court bench before also being made to step down form that position.

She is seeking to have the court judicially review the move by the JLSC, which she says is illegal.

In a response yesterday, Maharaj said the Civil Proceedings Rules of T&T and the established principles of public law provide that whenever there is a hearing of a Judicial Review application it should be heard in public.

“The proceedings which have been filed by Ayers-Caesar, however, are public law proceedings.

“Public law proceedings are filed against public officials and public bodies for the court in its supervisory jurisdiction to determine whether the public authority acted illegally, in breach of the rules of natural justice or unfairly or acted unreasonably or irrationally,” said Maharaj.

“In these Judicial Review proceedings which have been filed there are allegations by Marcia Ayers-Caesar that provisions of the Constitution in relation to her were contravened.”

He said the inherent jurisdiction of the court could not be used to prevent a public hearing in any matter when there was sufficient public interest for the proceeding to be heard in public.

“There are restrictions in law against the registry providing to non parties to claims filed access to the documents filed in court proceedings.

“It would appear that the wrong term was used to members of the Media in describing these restrictions as the proceedings being sealed.

“By using the term that the proceedings were sealed could have given the impression that there was a court order sealing the proceedings with the consequence that the hearing of the proceedings would be conducted privately.”

He said the courts in T&T administer justice in public at which anyone may attend and the press may report and that the justification for this principle was the value of the public scrutiny as the guarantor of the quality of justice.

“The right to a public hearing is protected by our Constitution and the principles of the common law. The rationale for this rule is that it is a means for public confidence in the courts to be maintained.

“This principle of Open Justice, however, is subject to exceptions such as restrictions against a public hearing in respect to matrimonial matters, ward-ship proceedings, interlocutory proceedings and in cases where statutes have expressly provided for private hearings such as cases involving children, trade secrets and national security in immigration matters.”

He said the proceedings which had been filed by Ayers Caesar were public law proceedings.

After what he described as a successful test run to Tobago and back to Port-of-Spain on Friday, Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan says the cargo vessel the Cabo Star should be ready to begin inter-island transport tomorrow.

In an interview yesterday, Sinanan said there were still a few necessary documents and agreements to be put in place in order for the vessel to sail commercially, including customs, immigration and maritime documents.

“They do have protocols to complete and ensure management agreements are in place. They should have this in place by Monday or Tuesday, but more likely it will be on Monday.

Sinanan said he had received a report that the test run went well and that stakeholders in Tobago were not disappointed.

The vessel reportedly left Port-of-Spain at 11.30 am and docked in Scarborough shortly before 5 pm. It returned to Port-of-Spain on Friday night.

Yesterday, secretary of the Tobago Business Chamber David Wong said a group of about 30 stakeholders including Minister Ayanna Webster-Roy toured the vessel.

“We managed to go aboard and get a walk around. It is a big boat and can carry a lot of trucks. It can do the job,” Wong said.

He said while things were returning to normal, in terms of the capacity of cargo which could be transported, he added that the effects of the past three months could still be felt by Tobagonians.

“We still don’t know where the Ocean Flower is. Now that we can bring goods to Tobago, moving people to Tobago is still a big problem.”

Both vessels were leased from Bridgemans Services Group of Vancouver, Canada, at a daily cost of US$22,500 (around $157,500 TT) and US$26,500 ($185,500 TT) respectively, and are expected to fill the transportation gap created when the Super Fast Galicia left these shores in April after a contractual fallout with Patt.

The Cabo Star will cost the Government $4,725,000 (TT) per month and the Ocean Flower $5,565,000 (TT).

The maintenance and staffing will be provided by the vessel’s owners given that it is being chartered for one year.

The vessel does not have the capacity to sail between both islands twice a day, but will sail once from either island six days a week.

Once the Cabo Star vessel begins operations, both the Atlantic Provider and the Barge will be pulled from the sea bridge.

A group of students from Arima North Secondary School, Fatima College, Bishop’s High School West and Costaatt visited Orlando from July 10 to July 17. The 15 students were part of a group founded by Arianne D’Abreau.

The main purpose of the group is to show that these students are capable of excellence, thereby building self-esteem, D’Abreau said.

These selected students, who were accompanied by their teachers, were pivotal in developing anti-bullying programmes and initiatives at their schools and it was felt that a trip such as this would motivate other students to develop similar programmes at their schools.

“The purpose of the trip was not only to provide an opportunity for travel but also many educational and memorable experiences,” D’Abreau said.

The students, who were rewarded for their dedication to anti-bullying, visited Disney World Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Disney World, and the Aquatica Water Park. They also enjoyed America’s expansive cuisine and some shopping.

This trip was initially in danger of failing as several deadlines for payment of airfare, hotel accommodation, ground transportation could not be met in the required time. However, many organisations, corporate entities and individuals came forward to render assistance. China Railway Construction was among the biggest supporters. Others were Mohammed’s Books Store, Bermudez Group of Companies, Pave the Way Foundation, Arima Borough Council, Us Kids, T N Ramnuath, Classic Cleaners Launders, Arouca Tent Rentals, Hoi Kam and others who requested anonymity.

Crime Watch television host Ian Alleyne has complained of serious threats he received from Unruly Isis gang leader, Abdul “Krysis” Wakeel Krysis while at the Chaguanas Health Facility on Friday evening.

Alleyne said while he was accustomed to receiving death threats from people “almost on a daily basis,” he is not taking the latest threats by Krysis lightly.

The threats come after the killing of gang member Jelani Sajjad Martins.

On Friday, about 3.30 pm, Martins and another man were standing along the sidewalk near Sheldon’s Auto, Caroni Savannah Road, when, according to a police report, Martins opened fire on patrolling officers. The officers returned fire and Martins was shot several times about the body.

He was taken to the Chaguanas Health Facility where he later died.

In an interview with the Sunday Guardian, Alleyne said he was concerned about his staff as they had also been threatened.

“My camera guy, and other staff members were told that they could be killed one by one as they leave the building where I have my studio,” Alleyne said.

“I was even told me to watch my back as it could have someone waiting for me by the doubles man close to the vicinity of where my studio is. As you know, they shot at a doubles man and robbed a man in earlier months.”

Alleyne, however, said while he has beefed up security at the premises and around himself, his family and Crime Watch staffers, he is very concerned at the threats made to the police officers.

He said: “I am shocked over the brazen threats carried out in the faces of these police officers. They were told that they know where they live. These people have no respect for the police and soldiers and this only shows that it is a slap in the face of the Police Commissioner Stephen Williams himself. But, protection is needed for these police officers and soldiers and I hope they are given priority.”

LAUNCH INVESTIGATION INTO KILLING—ABDULLAH

Head of the Waajihatul Islaamiyyah (The Islamic Front), Umar Abdullah yesterday called on Williams to launch an independent investigation into Martins’ killing and to immediately suspend the officers involved.

“We have already contacted the head of the Police Complaints Authority David West who is awaiting an official complaint tomorrow (Monday). Witnesses and video footage would also be made available.

“We would not stand idly by in the face of an act which is bound to erode public trust in our security forces.

“This approach to battling the challenges of crime and corruption in our nation must be reviewed.

“Those responsible for this behaviour must be brought to account and pay a heavy price,” Abdullah said.

On Friday, about 3.30 pm, Martins along with another man were standing along the pavement near Sheldon Auto, Caroni Savannah Road when, according to a police report, Martins opened fire on patrolling officers.

The officers returned fire and Martins was shot several times about the body.

He was taken to the Chaguanas Health Facility where he later died.

However, eyewitnesses are claiming that Martins was unarmed when he was shot in “cold blood” by patrolling police.

It was said that Martins went there with $22,000 to purchase a vehicle.

However, only $500 was recovered and questions surround as to where the rest of Martins’ money ($21,500) went.

Questions also surround the arrest of Martins’ friend by police subsequent to the shooting.

It is also alleged that a businessman was also assisting police into the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Emily Sookraj and her daughter were home alone yesterday when parts of their house were destroyed as a result of heavy rainfall.

The rain brought with it a landslide which crashed its way into their Jaggan Village, Santa Cruz, home.

Sookraj’s 31-year-old daughter, Suzanne Gomez, was asleep when the incident happened around noon.

In a brief interview last night, Sookraj said the only thing standing was the living room.

“Everything else mash up.”

Gomez was injured and had to seek medical attention at hospital. Sookraj said about ten years ago a similar incident occurred. The family did not receive assistance then and up to last night, Sookraj said none of the first responders responded to her call.

The heavy showers caused severe flooding in areas such as Maraval and Diego Martin.

It also brought traffic to a halt in some places.

The Meteorological Office forecast that light to moderate showers were expected today with a chance of thundershower activity mainly during the morning and early afternoon becoming heavy and thundery over Trinidad.

The Diego Martin and Santa Cruz rivers were raging yesterday after the heavy downpour.

The roadways in La Seiva, Saddle Road and Mt Hololo were flooded, with some vehicles stalled.

Just after noon, the rain began and in minutes, the city was under water.

There is a proliferation of Chinese businesses in communities across the country, including a strong presence in the country’s capital, Port-of-Spain.

The Chinese came to T&T more than 200 years ago and while mostly keeping to themselves, made an indelible mark in the business landscape, the culture and the food we eat.

Members of the local Chinese community spoke to the Sunday Guardian under strict anonymity about their history in T&T, their success at business ventures and an insidious gang culture that has started leaking on to the country’s streets.

In part one of this two-part series, the SG focuses on how the local Chinese community—from the first generation to now—has built business in T&T.

Charlotte Street is a microcosm of the phenomenon of Chinese owned or operated businesses mushrooming throughout the country. There are 35 business establishments on Charlotte Street, Port-of-Spain, run by a diverse mix of members of the Chinese business community.

After acquiring properties in urban, suburban and rural communities, new Chinese immigrants are establishing supermarkets, stores and restaurants wherever they settle.

The majority of the establishments are family owned, mainly consisting of variety stores, supermarkets and restaurants with one meat shop and a landmark Chinese merchandise and food store.

Approximately 71 per cent of the businesses are owned by Chinese immigrants who have been living in Trinidad for a number of years and their descendants, Trinidad-born Chinese.

The remaining 29 per cent of the businesses are run by recent Chinese immigrants, the “New Arrivals” or “Newcomers”.

The Chinese refer to the Chinese born in China, whether the person is old or a newborn baby, as the first generation, while their first-born children in Trinidad are referred to as the second generation. This is different from the Western perspective where the first-born Trinidad Chinese are called first generation Chinese.

Chinese immigrants to Trinidad came in five waves. The first shipment of 192 Chinese immigrants arrived in Trinidad on the ship Fortitude on October 12, 1806.

The second wave arrived from the southern Guangdong province, an area comprising Macao, Hong Kong and Canton to work as indentured labourers between 1853 and 1866. The third wave landed between the 1920s and 1940s.

During this period, earlier migrants who had become successful merchants, peddlers, traders and shopkeepers brought in family and friends from China.

By the 1970s, when China started opening up to the outside world, migration resumed once more, resulting in the fourth wave of Chinese immigration. The fifth ensuing wave began in the 1980s, and among the Chinese that traditionally came from the Guangdong province, who spoke Cantonese and Hakka Chinese dialects, were the “Newcomers” who spoke Mandarin and Fujianese.

Chinese raise capital quickly through pooled resources

A third-generation Chinese-Trinidadian businessman said the Chinese had many years to develop and hone their entrepreneurial skills in Trinidad, starting when they first challenged the monopoly the Portuguese had on the dry-goods businesses.

He revealed how the Chinese could raise substantial funds in a short space of time to buy a property or goods and how they arrived.

The businessman said “Chinese business people can raise capital legitimately by employing a version of the local Trinidadian sou sou.

“They pool their resources to go after an investment such as a property, a business venture or to buy goods and supplies in bulk to receive a big discount.

“Several Chinese organisations also employ a system similar to what the Japanese call ‘keiretsu,’ where a group of Chinese companies with interlocking business relationships join together to compete against a rival group of companies.

“In the old days, the patriarch of the family, usually the grandfather came to Trinidad first, where he would work for several years at a Chinese establishment, save his money, send some back home to his family in China and when he had saved enough, he would either send for his son and/or his wife to follow him to Trinidad.”

In 1970 the Trinidad dollar was pegged to US $2 and US $2.40 in 1980. The Chinese yuan was pegged to US $1.50 in 1980. Today, the Chinese yuan is equivalent to $1.20 TT.

He said in time, the grandfather together with his family in Trinidad, would send for more relatives who would help them in establishing their shops from humble beginnings.

Some rich young Chinese sent to Trinidad for “seasoning”

The businessman said while many Chinese nationals come to Trinidad for economic reasons, some are sent here for different purposes.

He revealed that some of the young Chinese are sent to Trinidad for what the Chinese called “seasoning”.

The businessman explained that some of the Chinese come from well-off families in China and the father thinks that his children were becoming too soft and spoilt, like “little emperors”.

He said the father might want his children to “learn humility, toughen them up, to experience some of the struggles he went through in becoming a wealthy, self-made man and wants them to strike out on their own and make their own fortune, so he sends them to family members who have businesses in Trinidad to do menial work they would not do in China”.

The businessman said some other Chinese youths may be borderline juvenile delinquents getting in trouble with the law, drinking, gambling, running down women, fighting or doing drugs in China and their parents ship them out to relatives in Trinidad to straighten them out working in their businesses.

Chinese businessmen very resilient

A second-generation Chinese businessman said many of the Chinese businessmen were very resilient, some migrated when they were threatened with violence and death, burning and looting during the 1970 Black Power era, but many stayed as they had put down roots in Trinidad and called the country home.

He noted the July 27, 1990, attempted coup led by Jamaat al Muslimeen leader Yasin Abu Bakr where several Chinese businessmen as well as other merchants in Port-of-Spain lost everything to fire and looting and in some cases that took generations of sacrifice to build.

The businessman said threats were made against them, he would never forget hearing from some people while walking the street, “Chinee! We coming to bun and loot allyuh out again!”

He also revealed that in the aftermath some Chinese businessmen were taken advantage of by several banks.

The businessman said there were two banks operating on Charlotte Street during that time, some of the Chinese businessmen were so economically independent before the attempted coup that they never needed to borrow from the banks and had little experience in this area.

He said they felt betrayed by some bankers who duped them, as they were of Chinese extraction also.

The businessman said one mixed Chinese bank manager in Port-of-Spain told them that all their financial records were destroyed, which was a fabrication to prevent them from going to another bank thereby locking them into taking a smaller loan.

He said at another bank, Chinese businessmen had their “soft” loans which were facilitated by the National Insurance Property Development Company Ltd (Nipdec) to rebuild their destroyed businesses turned into harsh demand loans by a female Chinese bank manager because they naively trusted her.

The businessman said despite these adversities, the Chinese businessmen learned from their mistakes and experience and continue to prosper and thrive in Trinidad. He emphasised that many of the Chinese, whether they were naturalised, living here for several generations, local born or recently arrived were law-abiding, hard working people and had a good work ethic. The businessman said they were a quiet people, did not bother anyone or go looking for trouble. He said the whole Chinese community should not be painted with the same brush with the “negative things” that affected several Chinese nationals that were reported in the media.

When the new school term opens in September, all sugary drinks including soft drinks will be banned from schools across the country. Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said the move was aimed at converting schools to healthy zones.

Deyalsingh was speaking to the media after addressing attendees at a one-week residential camp hosted by the Diabetes Association of T&T at the Preysal Secondary School yesterday. President Anthony Carmona and his wife, Reema Carmona, also attended the event, where she delivered the feature address.

“We have to recognise that we have a crisis on our hands when it comes to juvenile diabetes and childhood obesity, one of the drivers of that is an unhealthy lifestyle,” Deyalsingh said.

“An awareness campaign will be part of the Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) programme we are rolling out. It has started already, we have already conducted the Body Mass Index (BMI) study of over 5,000 students which started last year and we have banned the sale of sugary drinks in schools, we are already doing the Diabetes in Pregnancy programme, so all of these things have already started and more and more initiatives will be rolled out.

“So a part of the Non-Communicable Diseases programme is to encourage children to lead a healthier lifestyle, which includes what they drink, what they eat and how they exercise or don’t exercise.”

Deyalsingh said healthier options are to be introduced in schools instead. Through the programme, the Health Ministry will also seek to change the menus of free school meals provided by the Ministry of Education.

He said energy drinks are also going to be banned.

“It also includes the banning of the sale of energy drinks, we have to recognise that too many of our young people are drinking too many of these energy drinks which are not good for them, so we are also banning that from school cafeterias, especially for our secondary school children.”

While energy drinks will remain for sale on the open market, Deyalsingh said the ministry will be launching a public education to show the dangers of consuming those drinks.

Media personality Carlet Holder Alvarez was cremated yesterday.

The cremation took place at Allen’s Funeral Home in Arima after the salaat-ul-janazah (Islamic funeral prayer) was performed.

Host of The Black Agenda and local leader of the Nation of Islam, David Muhammad delivered the eulogy before a small group of mourners.

He told the Sunday Guardian he and Carlet met when they were 12.

“We were childhood friends. While she was at Bishop Anstey, I was at Trinity College, then we left the country and embraced Islam at the same time.”

He said Alvarez joined the Nation of Islam while in New York.

Alvarez died on July 15 after a battle with lupus. There was a family feud over her original funeral service on Thursday which resulted in it being postponed to yesterday.

Muhammad said his friendship with Alvarez was one of the most amazing, love-filled friendships he has had.

Asked about the two different religious rites, he said an Islamic service was done for her in honour of her Islamic heritage while the cremation was a compromise from her Christian family.

Meanwhile, her brother, Carlyle, who lives in the United States and arrived on Wednesday, told members of the media that there was a lot of miscommunication. 

“I don’t want to get into details. I was not contacted and my sister (Carla) was not contacted and we were travelling. I see that it became a big feud and it should not have been. If someone had just called...”

Asked who stopped Thursday’s funeral at the St Theresa RC Church in Woodbrook, Carlyle did not give a name, except to say “a family member” went to the church and stopped it.

“In a time of grieving it was sad this type of thing transpired.”

He laughed though and said Alvarez had been telling her friends when she died “it will be bacchanal”.

Alvarez would have celebrated her 47th birthday in September.

A South Oropouche man will appear in the Siparia Magistrates’ Court tomorrow charged with the murder of 17-year-old David Sancaro. The accused is a 37-year-old mechanic.

Sancaro, of St Mary’s Village, South Oropouche, was run over by a van on July 16 following an altercation at a bar.

According to reports, at around 9 pm on July 16, Sancaro and two of his friends, Stephen Tannis, 22, and Kadeem Elliot, 14, both of Fyzabad intervened when they saw a man allegedly physically abusing his female companion at a bar. The trio were liming along the Southern Main Road, Otaheite at the time.

When they intervened, the man allegedly grabbed a cutlass and chased them. The youngsters fled and the man followed in his Ford Ranger pickup. Sancaro’s friends were able to jump into a ditch to escape but Sancaro, who had recently had a minor surgery was unable to follow them.

The man allegedly hit Sancaro with the van and then reversed the vehicle on his body.

When the man tried to run over Sancaro a second time, Tannis and Elliot began pelting the vans with stones. The man drove off and later reported the matter to the Oropouche Police.

Sancaro was taken to the San Fernando General Hospital where he died while receiving treatment. He was laid to rest on Wednesday after a service at Guide’s Crematorium in San Fernando.