A cocktail of alcohol and bad temper led to a tragic end for two siblings who spent childhood into manhood together as one ended up in the mortuary while the other sat restlessly in jail.

Police said Ricky Harripersad, 37, a labourer of San Francique died around 3 am yesterday after being stabbed in the neck by the 27-year-old brother on Monday night.

A report stated that the men had an argument at their home, about nothing in particular, which led to the suspect picking up a kitchen knife and stabbing Harripersad.

Harripersad’s father, Ramnarine told the T&T Guardian that he was in his bedroom watching The Legend of Tarzan when he heard another son bawling in the living room. When he reached outside, he saw Ricky lying on the ground with his girlfriend, Britney, covering his wound with a cloth. He said even when he went outside and looked at the suspect, who appeared to be intoxicated, he too was threatened with death.

By the time police arrived, the suspect had left. However, he surrendered to police yesterday morning.

Ramnarine said both sons live at his home and never really had any major arguments or fights. He said the killing may have been influenced by the suspect’s drunken condition at the time.

With one more day to go in the month of January, there have been a recorded 63 murders in T&T, an all-time high, according to police officers.Over the past two days, there were three separate murders occurring in Laventille.On Monday, at about 6.45 pm, Ricardo Prescott, 20, was fatally shot at his home in Trou Macaque.

Police said Prescott lived near the area where schoolboy Joshua Andrews and PH taxi driver Devon Fernandez were shot and their bodies burnt in a vehicle in Laventille on January 7.

Police are yet to determine a motive for the killing but believe that it was gang-related.On Sunday at about 8.15 pm, Miguel Cruickshank, 30, was shot while at Furness Witty Road, Upper Erica Street. He died at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital while undergoing treatment.

Also, at 10.30 pm Keston Mayers was gunned down at Never Dirty in Morvant.

On January 26, the body of a man that was found at Wharf Trace, Maracas/St Joseph was yesterday identified as Christopher Crosby, 49, of Carenage. An autopsy revealed that he died from a single gunshot wound to the head. The Sunday Guardian reported that between January 1, 2013, to December 31, 2017, 2,190 people were murdered.Of that number, 391 of those killings have been solved.

Last year, 495 people were murdered. Head of the Homicide Bureau, ACP Anthony James believes that with time, the right equipment, legislative backing and the public supporting them, the murder toll can be significantly reduced.

A six-month pregnant woman and a 60-year-old man were airlifted and flown to the Sangre Grande District hospital for emergency treatment yesterday after they and 14 others were stranded for two days at Madamas Bay, which is located between Blanchisseuse and Matelot.

Julie La Rode, 27 and Neil Allain, of Maturita, were treated and La Rode was kept for observation at the hospital.Allain was reported to have fainted as he entered the hospital.

The group of 16 went to Madamas to camp over the weekend, Allain’s son Gareth, who was among those stranded, told the T&T Guardian by phone from the site.

The majority of the group arrived at Madamas Bay on Thursday while the remainder arrived Friday.

Madamas Bay is easily accessed via boat and that is the method the two groups used to reach there.

The boat was supposed to return for them on Sunday. However, because of rough waters on Sunday, the boat did not return.

When the boat did arrive for them around lunch-time on Monday at Madamas Bay tragedy struck.

“When the boatman was coming into the bay and trying to manoeuvre the boat a wave flipped it over,” Gareth said.

“Everybody had to run out to try to help him, to bail out the water and to try and salvage the boat and get it to shore,” he said.

When the boat was finally secured, its captain had to flush out the engine.

Around 5.30 pm several attempts were made to leave the bay but the waves were too high.

The group realised they would have to spend a second unplanned night in the area.

“By Sunday night we were without food so we went into the forest to find what we could eat, we caught some fish and we dug up some yams in the forest. We also ate coconut and drank coconut water,” Gareth said.

Gareth said some members of the group also went into the forest and got spring water for them to drink.

“We were all exhausted and people were losing hope and we had little quarrels in between but it was fine everyone eventually pulled together and we managed to stabilise our minds and decide that we all have to come out together safe,” he said.

There were problems to receive cellphone signals so the group had to come together to ensure they were able to make a call for help.

“We roamed the beach to and from and when we did find a place where we got reception we had a shift of people who stayed on that spot to tried and called, so somebody was always there hoping to get service,” Gareth said.

Eventually, the group were able to call E999 and explain their plight.

When the emergency services arrived La Rode and Allain were airlifted out.

In all, 14 members of the group were rescued. The captain and two members of the group stayed back last night to repair the vessel.

Sgt Ronny Ramphallard of Trinidad and Tobago Police Service’s (TTPS) Air Support Unit, utilising a National Security helicopter with SSA Air Division crew, Captain Varune Ghisyawan and Flight Officer Kurt Stafford responded.

Allain said the group were grateful to the emergency services for their response.

Claudette Quintero, the senior Allain’s wife, said she was relieved her husband was back home last night.

JOEL JULIEN AND
RALPH BANWARIE
 

A Vistabella welder is expected to appear before a San Fernando Magistrate today to answer charges of possession of an AK-47 assault rifle and $500,000 worth of cocaine and marijuana.

A report stated that the Southern Division Task Force, San Fernando CID and the Canine Unit were on an anti-crime exercise throughout Marabella, Vistabella and La Romaine to crack down on a drug operation.

The team, which included Snr Supt Zamsheed Mohammed and ASP Peter Ramdeen, Insp Don Gajadhar, Sgt Dale Ramroop and Cpl Barry Bacchus went to a house on Wharton Street, Vistabella.

While searching the house, they found an AK-47 assault rifle, 81 rounds of 7.62 mm ammunition and 32 rounds of 5.56mm ammunition.

There were also 900 grammes of cocaine and 4200 grammes of marijuana. The suspect was arrested and taken to the San Fernando Police Station where he was charged by PC Wesley Ascevero for the possession of firearms, possession of ammunition, possession of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking and possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.

Several other drug blocks were raided but police came up empty-handed.

Meanwhile, police have wrapped up their search for a Rousillac woman. Police said Patricia Rachel Mohammed, 37, who was reported missing by her father-in-law Rudolph De Souza on Tuesday has been found.

They provided no additional information on where she was found or her medical condition.

The T&T Electricity Commission has been operating at a loss for the past seven years and its chairman is saying that the board of directors is now looking at whether there is need to trim the fat at the utility which has close to 3,000 employees an annual wage bill of over a billion dollars.

Officials of the public utility company appeared before the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament yesterday when concerns were raised about issues of productivity, and absenteeism at the company which has been unable to pay its bills to the National Gas Company for the supply of natural gas.

T&TEC chairman Keith Sirju admitted the company has been operating at a loss since 2011. He said the annual wage bill stood at $900m, overtime claims $120m and payment to contractors was $100m.

The utility’s financials came into focus yesterday when Sirju and Ramsook and other top company officials appeared before the PAC to discuss the audited financials of the commission for the period 2012 to 2015.

Sirju revealed that from 2011 to present, T&TEC’s income cannot meet its expenditure, “every year for the past seven years we are running at a loss that’s a hurdle that has to be overcome.”

He said the Board is now looking at “whether there is fat to be trimmed.”

And the Board is also looking at “whether it is related to the price at which we sell electricity which has not been adjusted for eight years.”

In recent times, two other public utilities have come into the public microscope. WASA’s management has also admitted that the company was overstaffed by as much as 2,000 workers and TSTT which has been a profitable state enterprise has began to cut costs by closing several of its outlets.

The action by TSTT has prompted protests by the representing Communication Workers’ Union.

TSTT says it has offered the workers the opportunity to be redeployed elsewhere and given other opportunities.

T&TEC General Manager Kelvin Ramsook told the parliamentary committee yesterday that the utility is now in discussions at the Ministry of Labour with the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union seeking to reclassify contract “drivers” as craftsmen to increase the pool of crews and to increase productivity.

“We don’t want to send anybody home. Through attrition, people will go but I have 215 people with the position ‘drivers’ that I could have 100 two-man crews. The craftsman can get higher pay if he gets to a technical level he does not have to lose his job,” Ramsook said.

He said they had looked at other territories including Jamaica, Barbados and Florida Flight and Power. “We have given the evidence, we not saying we sending anybody home. We will train those who want to be trained,” he said.

The matter is now at the Ministry of Labour, he said, adding that “this will significantly solve the productivity issue that we have, what we want are linesmen, electricians, crew supervisors, all of them must be able to drive a vehicle and get on the job site.”

The issue of absenteeism at the Commission was so drastic that the company had to “cut pay for people on leave.”

“When we do checks, you on leave (sick leave) but you out there doing something else. When you are home you should be recuperating and going to the doctor,” he said.

In addition, the utility, which says it places a high priority on the reliability of supply to customers, is paying for 400 megawatts of electricity which it is not using and is also facing an increase in the price for natural gas which it pays to NGC. T&TEC owes NGC billions of dollars for natural gas.

STATE COMPANIES OWE $M

While T&TEC moves on the average consumers by disconnecting their electricity supply at a cost, the PAC heard that it’s not the same for State-related companies which owe millions.

Sirju said, “the breakdown shows a lot of delinquent customers, WASA, TSTT sometimes Petrotin and the like.”

The TSTT debt was put at $51 million and is part of a dispute for pole rentals which the Commission hopes will be resolved soon.

Sirju admitted that one of the challenges the Commission faces is that it cannot turn off power from WASA.

A private company Desalcott which provides water to WASA owes T&TEC $36 m.

Ramsook told the PAC that in analysing the records, 23 per cent of the Commission’s expenditure is “related to salary and wages,” but the majority is related to conversion and gas generation, where the utility has “little control over.

NEW INITIATIVES

The Commission plans to introduce solar street lights in the Manzanilla area. Ramsook said, “the process is completed and we are waiting for final approval.”

Ramsook said 1.5 per cent of the population is without electricity and for consumers with power the Commission strives to ensure that power outage last no longer than an average one and a half hours. In Tobago, the average is 2.7 hours, something which he said the Commission is hoping to improve to get to the national average of 1.5 hours.

One of the nominees for the post of Police Commissioner has admitted that deploying manpower in known criminal “hot spots” may not be the most effective way of combating crime.

President of the Police Social and Welfare Association Insp Michael Seales said the initiative which has been used in past five years was not bearing results.

Speaking at a press conference at the Association’s office, on Besson Street, Port-of-Spain yesterday, he said, officers were “complaining and were unhappy with this regime.”

“It is restrictive in terms of methodology, so for the association, although we have seen a seizure of 1,064 firearms off the streets, we have found that there is no correlation between the number of firearms found and that amount of murders committed,” Seales said.

He urged that “something different must be done.

“We cannot continue the same strategy because it was done for the whole of last year and we got 494 murders. We are doing the same thing this month and we have now reached 63...in the first time in the history of T&T murders.”

He described the crime situation as not only troubling but also heart-wrenching adding that “it was not right.”

On fears that prisons officers were the target of criminal elements within the prison’s wall, Seales said this could also result negatively for the Police Service.

“If you have an arm of the protective service saying that their men don’t feel safe then that spells trouble for us,” Seales said.

One recommendation, he said, was to properly analyse data so that informed projections could be made to pave the way for the future.

“So what has happened before in terms of historical context has already failed us. We need to get analysts on board to look at how the crimes are spread out and particularity the murders...for them to say...listen it is more likely than not that a murder is going to be committed in that area.

“We are not satisfied that is being done but for us, that will be our recommendation,” Seales said.

Regarding witnesses, he said, this was another challenge as many were unwilling to come forward to give evidence.

“We may have to look at it from a law enforcement perspective creating the atmosphere where persons can actually upload live events because people are safer in thinking in that way....that they can do so anonymously.

“That is a rich area to explore,” Seales said.

Regarding short-term measures, he said, the confidence of the public must be won back.

The association’s secretary ASP Anand Ramesar, who also spoke, said while technology was very helpful regarding intelligence gathering it was not the only factor.

He said management of the organisation must be examined and selection of a police commissioner must be made a top priority.

“It’s not just about having the resources but how you combine the resources and the current combination is not working in the TTPS and you need to have a changed perspective,” Ramesar said.

On the selection of DCP Deodath Dulalchan by the Police Service Commission as the top nominee for the post of Police Commissioner, he said, the association was concerned about this information which has caused a sense of “unease and disquiet” among the rank and file.

Investigators probing the alleged theft and attempted sale of police gear by a junior officer are hoping to wrap up their inquiries today.

The 22-year-old police constable found in possession of two police-issued bullet-proof vests remained in the custody of the Professional Standards Bureau while his 21-year-old relative and 54-year-old neighbour remained locked up at the Princes Town Police Station.

On Monday, the three suspects were held during an anti-crime operation by the Southern Division Task Force, CID and Canine Unit in Barrackpore and Moruga. Based on intelligence gathering, the officers went to Rochard Douglas Road in Barrackpore where they intercepted a black pick up truck.

The police officer, who is attached to the Couva Police Station, ran out of the pick-up and into some bushes. The police team gave chase and he was eventually caught red-handed with a bag containing the vests. The other two occupants were ordered out of the vehicle and they were all taken to the Princes Town Police Station. A search warrant was obtained to search the errant officer’s home along the Penal Rock Road, Moruga. Investigators found three police issued firearm holsters marked Couva Police Station. The officer, who has just over one year service, was then handed over the Professional Standards Bureau.

Education Minister Anthony Garcia has accused the media of sensationalizing a fracas at the Valencia High School earlier this week.

In an interview at his ministry yesterday, Garcia claimed that reports, which alleged that teachers had locked themselves in classrooms during the incident, were untrue based on a report he received from the school’s principal.

“The report did not for one moment or for one line indicate that teachers had to lock themselves in. That was sensationalizing the issue. That is one of the problems I have,” Garcia said.

He said that the incident stemmed from a confrontation between students from the school and teenagers from another, which occurred outside a fast food restaurant in Arima, outside of school hours.

“Apparently some students are now taking their bad behaviour outside of the school and this is exactly what happened. I understand that there was some measure of retaliation and some persons, who came to school, were not allowed to enter the premises,” Garcia said.

He claimed that the principal’s report denied allegations that people were seen scaling the fence of the school in a reprisal attack on the students involved in the initial altercation.

“That is not true. That is totally false,” Garcia said.

Garcia stated that preliminary investigations revealed that the students were between ages 13 and 14.

“The major perpetrator is a Form Three student and the two others are in Form Two. These minor offences and I see no need to blow this out of proportion,” Garcia said.

Despite Garcia’s claims, short video clips of the incident, posted on social media, showed a female teenager armed with a piece of wood climbing over the fence and entering the school. She appeared to be tackled by a guard almost immediately after she made it over.

Another appears to shows a group of students running away from the locked gate of the school as another group of youths stood outside.

Garcia said the incident was an anomaly as his ministry had noticed a drop in school violence.

“We have been saying that because of the things we have put in place in our school system, we are now seeing the positive results. Incidents of indiscipline and violence like these two are on the wane,” Garcia said.

The incident is being investigated by both the police and the ministry’s Director of School Supervision.

A decomposed body has been found in the forested areas off St Anns yesterday.

CNC3 News reported the discovery was made by hunters around midday.

The group were reportedly combing the forests behind the Fondes Amandes area when they made the discovery. They immediately contacted police.

Officers say the body was so badly decomposed, it was difficult to ascertain the sex of the corpse.

The body was removed to the Forensic Science Centre while the hunters were taken to the Belmont Police Station to give statements.

CNC3 News was told the body was found not far from the home of the former director of the national museum and art gallery Dr Claire Broadbridge who was murdered last September. Investigations are continuing.

Two soldiers, accused of defrauding the Defence Force of $1.5m in an alleged payroll scam, have agreed to repay the money.

Lance corporal Jason Richards and private Josimar Belgrave gave the undertaking as the State’s civil lawsuit against them came up for hearing before Justice Ricky Rahim in the Port-of-Spain High Court yesterday.

Under the consent order, which details the agreement, the soldiers agreed to repay $1,480,000 and surrender their two vehicles—a 2008 Nissan Tiana and a 2013 Nissan Versa—to the Defence Force. They are also required to solicit sales of the vehicles.

The order also states that the duo admitted to receiving the money in their accounts and that they spent all that they had received.

The agreement does not affect an ongoing criminal case in which they are facing a total of 162 fraud charges.

Richards, a payroll clerk with the Defence Force, is facing the majority of the charges as he was accused of stealing the money by inflating his and Belgrave’s rent allowance between February and July, last year.

He was also charged with wilfully falsifying the TTDF’s human resource records in a bid to cover up the crimes and was charged for each time he disposed of the money by transfers from his account to those of his relatives and through ATM and over-the-counter withdrawals.

Belgrave, a striker with the TTDF’s T&T Pro League team, was charged with disposing of the money through various transfers and withdrawals.

They pleaded not guilty to the charges during their first court appearance in October, last year.

The soldiers were first detained on July 27, last year after the money was discovered missing. They had initially challenged the conditions of their detention but were released from Regiment custody before the case was decided.

The Defence Force conducted an internal investigation and successfully obtained an order freezing the soldiers’ assets.

Hope for finding missing diver Chevonne Bartholemew alive grew dimmer yesterday.

Bartholemew went missing on Monday in a routine dive off Gasparee Island and his wife, Pete-Ann, is now pleading for the search to widen to as far as Grenada and Venezuela.

She said even though her husband’s oxygen tank would have run out of air by now, she said he could be drifting somewhere in the ocean, possibly outside of territorial waters.

She does not believe there is any foul play in his disappearance.

However, her children Zion, 11 and Zoe, six, are terrified that they may not see their father again.

Pete-Ann said yesterday had to console the children before she put them to bed.

However, her faith remained unwavering.

She said a group of divers including those who were with Bartholemew during the dive off Gasparee Island, visited her on Tuesday night. One of the divers told her that Bartholemew was taking photographs of a vessel anchored in the Gulf of Paria at a depth of about 65 feet on Monday when he disappeared.

The diver said he saw Bartholemew’s headlight when he glanced behind him but when he looked for Bartholemew a while later, he was gone.

The diver said he did not go back for Bartholemew as he believed Bartholemew went to another part of the ship.

He said he was following protocol, adding that the job had been outlined in detail before they took the dive.

Pete-Ann said she was thankful that so many people were still searching for her husband, including fishermen and other divers who gave up jobs to help search.

“Right now we have six vessels out there. I am hearing that he may have drifted out to Venezuela so I am trying to contact the Venezuelan Embassy and the Grenadian Embassy. I am attaching information on my husband and the newspaper article link,” Pete-Ann said.

She said a missing person’s report was lodged at the Carenage Police Station.

Trinidive Underwater Services, the company with which Bartholemew is employed, has not answered questions relating to Bartholemew’s disappearance.

Public Relations Officer at the T&T Coast Guard Lt Sherron Manswell said yesterday that the search for Bartholemew was still ongoing. Asked whether it had expanded outside of territorial waters, Manswell said no. He could not say whether the Venezuelan Embassy and the Guardia Nacional were contacted to assist in the search.

Two Government Ministers touched by the plight of a six-month-old baby who suffered a fractured skull last year have reached out to help.

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh and Minister of Social Development and Family Services, Cherrie-Ann Crichlow-Cockburn have taken an interest in the case of baby Christopher Sahadeo.

The baby who suffers from bleeding in his brain was first featured in Tuesday’s T&T Guardian after his parents Christine Sahadeo and Curtis Poonilal begged for assistance to pay their son’s medical bills.

Deyalsingh has requested a full report on the baby’s medical history, a medical official with knowledge of the case said.

Poonilal in an interview yesterday said he was happy both ministers had taken interest in his son’s case. He said officials from the Social Development Ministry called him on Tuesday to find out if he ever applied for aid from the Social Welfare department.

Poonilal said he had requested assistance from the officials at the Rio Claro office but was told he would have to go to Princes Town.

“The official from the Ministry told me that this was irregular and the Rio Claro social workers should have investigated and assisted,” Poonilal said.

He said the official told him the instructions came from the line minister who mandated that they look into the family’s circumstances and provide the necessary grants if required.

A social worker attached to the hospital provided assistance to the family as they were unable to afford the care privately and the hospital did not have the resources.

He said that scores of people have promised to provide milk, diapers and other supplies to them on Saturday.

An executive from an oil company also offered assistance, he said.

Poonilal said they were waiting to do an MRI scan on the baby.

Christopher suffered a cracked skull on October 4 when his family’s wooden house collapsed following heavy rains.

He started bleeding to his brain and doctors said several tests will have to be done to determine if he needs brain surgery.

On Tuesday, TORCH tests were done as well as another test to determine how fast his blood clots. The baby continues to be on medication which is provided by the San Fernando General Hospital.

However, other tests are being done privately.

This country’s lone inter-island cargo vessel, the Cabo Star, changed course yesterday en route from the Port of Scarborough to Port-of-Spain after it received a distress signal from a barge that had overturned midway between Grenada and Trinidad.

The crew later assisted in rescuing five people, including one man who fell overboard. At the time, the vessel had a full complement of passengers and was loaded with cargo.

The T&T Guardian was told that the vessel left Scarborough at 11 pm and was on course for arrival at the Port of Port-of-Spain at 5.30 am yesterday. However, according to Bridgemans Services Ltd president Brian Grange, “the ship received a mayday call response directed by the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) in Port-of-Spain at approximately 4 am.”

Grange said the MRCC “requested to give assistance to the MV Carrier Adventure in a search and rescue operation,” after it was reported that sailors were overboard and in the water.

Inter-Island Truckers Association vice president Samuel Applewhite told the T&T Guardian that the vessel had a “full complement of passengers and cargo.” He said the captain informed the passengers that there was a mayday alert for the vessel to respond to a search and rescue mission.

But Applewhite’s major concern was that the close to 100 people on the vessel, including truckers, “had nothing to eat. They would only have access to snacks, like potato chips and soft drinks in limited quantities.”

In addition, he said there is only one male and one female toilet in working order on the vessel and there is limited sleeping accommodation.

But Grange said “safety at sea is number one priority always. If a maritime accident occurred and our sailors were in water and lives were at risk, I would want every ship in the area to assist us.”

However, he made it clear that “the captain would never put the MV Cabo Star passengers and crew in danger at any time.” T&T Coast Guard officials told the T&T Guardian that in the maritime world there is a distress frequency and any vessel which is closest to the vessel in distress has a responsibility to respond.

“It will be remiss of them to pass and not respond,” one Coast Guard official said.

The Cabo Star returned to its course when the Grenada Coast Guard arrived.

A Diego Martin man is on the run after he was discovered to be the person involved in video sexually assaulting a child.

The video, which has been circulating on social media in recent days, was initially believed to have been filmed in Jamaica but was yesterday confirmed by police to be a local recording.

The grandparent of the child and a close female relative made a report to the Four Roads Police Station on Wednesday night after seeing the video. The video is currently engaging members of the Police Service and the Children’s Authority.

Meanwhile, the T&T Police Service and the Children’s Authority are strongly urging the public to desist from posting pornographic material involving children on social media.

A media release from the TTPS yesterday said: “To engage in the distribution or circulation of sexually graphic or explicit material involving minors constitutes an offence under section 40 (1) of the Children Act. The Act states inter alia, “any person who knowingly publishes, distributes, transmits or shows any child pornography; obtains access, through information and communication technology, to child pornography; has in his possession or control any pornography; purchases, exchanges or otherwise receives any child pornography, commits an offence and is liable on conviction on indictment, to a fine of $30,000 and to imprisonment for ten years.”

The release added that under Section 40 (2) of the Act, also states, “a person knowingly distributes child pornography, if he knowingly (a) offers; or (b) transmits by any means including post, courier, electronic means or facsimile, child pornography to another person.”

The TTPS also warned that for the purposes of the law, it matters not from where the offending material originates.

“Should a member of the public come into possession of graphic material involving children, said material must to be brought to the attention of the police, for the initiation of an appropriate investigation,” the release said.

The Children’s Authority also said it welcomes the public’s efforts to highlight cases of child abuse, but advised the public to refrain from sharing posts that reveal children’s faces and identity via the internet, since this can cause further trauma to the child. The authority said all videos regarding child protection concerns should be sent to registry@ttchildren.org or info@ttchildren.org or a report can be made to our hotlines at 996 or 800-2014.

Soca star and radio personality Shal Marshall was thanking his lucky stars that bandits did not get away with some of the rewards of his bumper season with hit Splinters yesterday.

This after quick work from the police led to the capture of three bandits who attempted to steal some cash he put in his car in Woodbrook yesterday.

According to a release from the T&T Police Service, Marshall had parked his Mercedes Benz at the Massy Technology car park along Tragarete Road around 11.45 am before entering the radio station where he is employed.

Less than half an hour later, a female relative arrived and handed him a quantity of cash. Marshall reportedly returned to his car, secured the money and went back to the station.

Around 1 pm, however, Marshall saw a man trying to break the left rear glass of the car and raised an alarm. The suspect ran but Marshall and a friend chased after him. The bandit later tried to get into a Nissan Almera with two male occupants which was parked a short distance away. But the suspect was prevented from getting into the vehicle and his cohorts sped off. T

his gave officers from the Woodbrook Police Station, who were on patrol in the area, time to respond and arrest the suspect as he tried to flee the area on foot.

The getaway car was intercepted by Inter-Agency Task Force officers at the corner of Roberts and Carlos Streets, Woodbrook, a few minutes later and the two other suspects held. The three suspects, all in their twenties, were arrested and are expected to appear on ID parades soon.

When the T&T Guardian contacted Marshall after the incident yesterday, he was in the process of making a report to the police.

It is what it is bro. What yuh go do,” he told the T&T Guardian.

Grimacing from the knife wound a female relative had dealt him a mere three days before, 14-year-old John (not his real name) still tried to keep a smile as journalists yesterday walked through the bedroom he is forced to sleep in, next to a duck pen.

The smell of faeces was overbearing at his Tabaquite home, but it is where the epileptic outpatient now spends his nights after his relatives kicked him out of the habitable part of the house. With no covering on the mattress, most of the louvres missing and mosquito infested water around the house, his nights are cold. His dingy clothes were just flung across an old chair.

His neighbours were emotional yesterday as they spoke about the unclean conditions he lived in, but more so the abuse he suffers at the hands of a female relative. After claiming ignorance over how John suffered the gash and the other scars, the woman admitted that she got angry at him and struck him. She said she did not mean to cut him, but admitted she had the knife in her hand at the time.

Their neighbour Faith Ramcharan, whose photos and video of John’s injuries and accommodation went viral on social media on Wednesday, said since the teen moved in with the female relative and her common-law husband six months ago, he has been constantly abused. Showing the piece of wood she claimed was used to abuse the child, Ramcharan said she had to take it away from the woman’s reach.

“His aunt came this morning to visit and she explained his background. She told us that he only went preschool and that his age was 16. He said he is 14 and his mother gives a different age,” Ramcharan said.

“He is always smiling, even when he is getting licks but he bawls. He gets licks weekly and when we talk to her, she said she does not want him. She said she made him so she could kill him. Someone from the Children’s Authority came but the mother said that she does not want the child.”

John’s step father showed journalists the boy’s room, saying it was acceptable since he (step father) lived in worse conditions as a child. He described John as troublesome and lazy, saying that he would roam the streets and get into trouble. He said he moved John to the lower floor because he would peep at them while they were having intercourse or when they were watching adult movies. Asked whether he felt John was mentally sound, he said no but still insisted that the child finds a job and clean his room.

While the stepfather said John held down a neighbour’s daughter and threw a bottle at a boy recently, neighbours said John was exposed to lewd sexual behaviour and was only repeating what he saw. Just last week, John went to play football in the savannah when a group of boys began to bully him so he threw the bottle in retaliation, they said.

An officer from the Children’s Authority visited yesterday but said he could not give any information to the media. John was taken into the care of the authority.

In a release yesterday, the authority said when John’s case was brought to its attention, the Emergency Response Team (ERT) was dispatched to locate him to determine the necessary intervention. On another issue, the authority said while it welcomes efforts in highlighting cases of child abuse the public should refrain from sharing posts that reveal children’s faces and identity via the internet, since this can cause further trauma to the child. (See other story)

Ramcharan agreed that when she reported the abuse to the Children’s Authority on previous occasions they visited last December and in January, but said they failed to assess the living conditions of the child. She said the Brasso police would often visit, but they have only spoken to the relatives who would stop for a short time before the beatings resume.

“If you continue to distress my officers fire go bun you.”

This was the message sent to the criminal elements yesterday by Prisons Commissioner Gerard Wilson. He was speaking at the funeral service of fallen prisons officer Devendra Boodooram at the Faith Assembly International Church, Five Rivers, Arouca.

Wilson’s statements came against the backdrop of the murders of five law enforcement officers, including three prisons officers, in the line of duty in the past five months.

A visibly upset Wilson said he had crafted his own version of the popular tune “Year for Love” by soca artiste Voice for the service.

“Tell me what dey fighting for...what they killing for. We don’t need no more, fire go bun dem.

“Another one just gone and yuh beat your chest and smile.

“Another officer gone...Bad man rock back, look for ah wuk. If you continue to distress my officers fire go bun yuh,” Wilson sang to the congregation.

His lyrics brought shouts of “Amen” and resounding rounds of applause from the congregation members.

Wilson said hoped the lives of grieving families would return to some level of normalcy given the unrelenting bravado of those who continued to defy authority.

He described Boodooram as an officer who was loved and respected by his colleagues and inmates alike.

Speaking about the lockdown at the Port-of-Spain prison which occurred the day before Boodooram’s killing, Wilson said, “As officers you will certainly make the connection with a search activity and the cowardice actions of a few. Can we now suggest that one moment of indiscretion is reason to snuff out the life of a human being? However, as professionals we can’t allow emotions to turn us into monsters like the same individuals whose actions brought us here today (yesterday’s service).”

During the search it was reported that some inmates were beaten by prisons officers.

Curtis Belford, of the National Security Officers’ Foundation, who also spoke during the service, said Boodooram’s only crime was ‘”remaining true to his country.”

“For how often unpleasant is fate that those to whom Boodooram was committed should commit him to this fate,” Belford said.

He said it was truly saddening to recognise that citizens were growing increasingly numb to the tragic stories of officers who had lost their lives in the line of duty.

“Our national security officers continue to display courage that is so consistent and common place that it would be a national tragedy if we were to forget their legacy,” Belford urged.

DAUGHTER SCARED FOR FUTURE

In reading a letter penned to her deceased father, Boodooram’s eldest daughter Tisha openly cried as she recalled fond memories.

She boasted about her father’s famous peleau and pepper sauce, sacrifices he made to ensure his family had a comfortable life, his passion for riding motor bikes and his undying love for his wife of 23 years Asha.

Saying her father deserved much more in life, Tisha, who is studying abroad, said she had planned to enrol him in flying lessons and buy him a Harley Davidson motorbike.

“Daddy, you sacrificed everything and you were the best father. I have no idea what will happen now. Daddy I am scared. We need you,” Tisha said.

A sketch of the man suspected of fatally shooting prison officer Devendra Boodooram in broad daylight in Port-of-Spain last week has been released by the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service’s (TTPS) Criminal Intelligence Unit.

According to the TTPS, the man is believed to be between 24 to 28 years and of African descent.

The man, who is slim built, has a “fair/light brown complexion” and is believed to be five feet five inches tall. He was wearing a “blue long sleeved jersey with multi colours” and a beige coloured cap at the time he committed the crime.

The suspect was clean shaven and appeared to be right handed. He is considered armed and dangerous by the police.

Anyone who can help put a name to the suspect’s face is asked to call 999, 555, 800-TIPS or 624-5230.

The sketch was released yesterday, the same day that Boodooram’s final rites were observed.

Boodooram was shot dead around 5 pm last Friday while he was in traffic along Frederick Street, a stone’s throw from the Port-of- Spain prison. He had just come of duty.

His killing came after death threats were posted on social media after his colleagues were recorded kicking prisoners while the inmates’ hands were tied during a lockdown and search at the facility.

According to police reports, a gunman walked up to Boodooram’s vehicle and shot him at least four times in the head and chest. The killer then ran up Frederick Street and across Oxford Street heading toward Charford Courts. Police said the killer came out of a vehicle that was seen near the prison moments before the murder took place.

Farmer Satesh Maraj apparently came down with a case of amnesia yesterday when questioned about the situation where he was forced from State land in favour of the man proposed to become this country’s new substantive police commissioner, Deodat Dulalchan.

The House of Representatives will today debate Dulalchan’s nomination for the post of Police Commissioner and Deputy Police Commissioner.

But while Maraj seemed to suffer from memory loss yesterday, three months ago he wrote the Commissioner of State Lands Paula Drakes pleading to get back the land which was taken from him.

On September 2, the Commissioner of State Lands granted Dulalchan permission to lease State land at Chatoorie Street Extension, Felicity, for agricultural purposes.

According to an occupancy report done by the Ministry of Agriculture, Maraj claimed his crops were brush cut by Dulalchan.

In a letter dated October 30, last year Maraj wrote Drakes, about the situation.

Maraj said he had been farming on five acres of land at Chattorie Street, Felicity, for 14 years.

“Around July of this year I was contacted by Inspector of Lands Mr Mohammed, who informed me that half acre of land that I was occupying for the purpose of agriculture, which I had planted a crop of sweet potato, was allocated and given to another person,” Maraj wrote.

“As records will show in the Ministry of Agriculture the land was being planted at this time by me,” he stated.

Maraj said some of his crops were affected by the flooding caused by Tropical Storm Bret last June.

“I will be very thankful and I would appreciate you reallocating me, so I can continue growing crops. The crops that I plant are sweet potato, hot peppers and cassava and presently I am embarking in the process of upgrading to a hydroponic system to produce lettuce and patchoi,” he stated.

“I am formally requesting legal permission to continue to plant crops and to perform other agriculture duties on the said land,” Maraj stated.

Maraj provided his farmer’s badge registration number.

“I am preventing squatters from occupying the land and building illegal structures. I will continue to do that and I am asking permission to continue to grow and cultivate said lands,” he stated.

“I am willing to pay any taxes which may have incurred due to my occupation of the land,” Maraj stated.

A contact number was provided in the letter, along with photocopies of Maraj’s national identification and farmer registration information.

When the T&T Guardian contacted Maraj yesterday though his tuned changed. Maraj said he had no issue.

“I don’t have anything to do with that piece of land. I didn’t have any problem with whoever got land there,” Maraj said.

Dulalchan registered as a farmer with Agriculture Ministry’s County Caroni Extension on October 2, 2017.

This was days after he obtained approval to occupy the State Land.

Farmers Bhola Ramdass, Dindi Tarbanie and Selvin Mahabir were said to be displaced as a result of Dulalchan being granted the State Land at the Bernard Road Food Project.

The Police Service Commission’s nomination of Deodat Dulalchan for the post of Commissioner of Police and that of Harold Phillips for the post of Deputy Commissioner of Police may be stymied when the Parliament meets to discuss the matter today.

This scenario has been predicted in the face of concerns from both the Government and the Opposition over the selection process used by the Police Service Commission.

The Opposition is now calling for full disclosure on the material that was considered by the Commission in the selection of the men for the positions of top cop and deputy.

Signals of concern from both the Government and the Opposition over the selection and the process used emerged yesterday via emailed correspondence obtained by the T&T Guardian, from Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley to Opposition leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar, requesting a meeting with her and a small team at 3 pm yesterday, to discuss the nominations.

In her response, Persad Bissessar turned down the PM’s request instead telling him that “the public interest requires that there be full disclosure by the Police Service Commission (PSC) in this matter.”

Under the Constitution the PSC which is charged with the process for selection of the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioners is answerable only to the President.

Persad-Bissessar has proposed to the Prime Minister that the Government and the Opposition should approach President Anthony Carmona telling him that “the public interest requires that the Commission make full disclosure of all the material that was considered in the matter to both the Government and the Opposition in order for the Parliament to effectively discharge its duty in this matter.”

“Without full disclosure,” she said, any debate in the Parliament will be “futile.”

Three notices relating to the nominations of Dulalchan as Commissioner of Police, Deputy Commissioner of Police, the substantive post for which he applied, and Harold Phillips as Deputy Commissioner of Police are on the Order Paper for today’s sitting of Parliament.

In his email, Rowley told Persad-Bissessar “given what is awash in the public domain and the requirement for the process to be now received by Parliament, it is my view that we should have a discussion on this assignment before it comes to the Parliament floor.”

But Persad-Bissessar told the PM that she believed that “any meeting on this particular matter at this time will not be productive,” and trust that he would “see the wisdom of adopting these approaches,” which she had suggested.

The Opposition Leader said she had taken “careful note” of the reports in the media with respect to the process that was engaged by the PSC in arriving at the proposed nominees that were submitted to the President for the appointments to the positions of Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner.

She commended the media for “highlighting issues touching and concerning the process and the suitability of the proposed nominees in discharging its duty as the fourth estate.”

But she said the Opposition did not agree with the Prime Minister that “what is now awash” in the public domain “should be the catalyst for a meeting between the Government and the Opposition “on such an important matter to the democracy of our country.”

Using Rowley’s words, she said, there are many other matters “awash in the public domain” which are critical, “for example the bloodiest month in the history of our country, the Anti-Gang and Anti-Terrorism legislation and others that have not necessitated a meeting between the government and the Opposition.”