No cards for 112 V'zuelan criminals

SOME 112 Venezuelan migrants in TT will be refused regularisation, as they were found to have criminal records for serious offences, acting Prime Minister Colm Imbert told the House of Representatives on Friday.

He was replying to a question to the PM from Couva South MP Rudy Indarsingh, who asked how many of the 16,523 applicants had received cards.

Imbert said individual identities must be confirmed before any migrant registration cards were issued.

He said 5,148 applicants had been verified by the Venezuelan and TT authorities and Interpol, and so have been recommended for ministerial approval.

Some 3,091 migrant registration cards had been processed and printed for collection by individuals who are to be notified, he added.

Asked if the vetting had found any applicants to have fallen afoul of the law, Imbert replied, “So far, 112 have criminal records, ranging from robbery, larceny, drug trafficking and homicide.”

Indarsingh asked if the migrants who had criminal records were still in TT or had been repatriated to Venezuela.

Imbert replied, “I’d advise the member to pose that as a direct question to the Minister of National Security.”

Caroni East MP Dr Tim Gopeesingh, in a supplemental query, asked about any measures to detect any communicable diseases, but Deputy Speaker Esmond Forde disallowed it.

The registration period ran from May 31-June 14. Approved migrants may remain for an initial period of six months after which they will be assessed again for permission to stay a further six months.