Griffith orders report into collapsed Alicia’s Guest House raid case

Police Commissioner Gary Griffith has ordered a report into the breakdown of the case against 11 people, arrested in April at a St Ann’s guest house for breaching covid19 public health regulations, that was thrown out by a magistrate. A 12th person, a Venezuelan woman, is expected to have her case dismissed when she reappears in court on Monday.

On Tuesday, in a telephone interview on the TV6 Beyond the Tape show, Griffith said he is taking the matter seriously and intends to ascertain where the police fell short in their investigation.

Five Trinidadian men and seven Venezuelan women were held at Alicia’s Guest House on April 10, when public gatherings were restricted to a maximum of five.

Magistrate Sarah De Silva dismissed the charges for want of prosecution by the police.

Four of the men had also challenged the legality of the covid19 regulations in a High Court claim which Justice Ronnie Boodoosingh dismissed in September. They said they were doing charity work by cooking a meal for a group of Venezuelan friends in need.

One of them, a fisherman, claimed he went to collect money for a car he had rented to a friend who worked at the guest house.

Boodoosingh did not analyse the men’s claims over their arrests but, in dismissing their legal challenge, held that the regulations were lawful, as they conformed with public health ordinances and were warranted because of the global coronavirus pandemic.

Griffith, on Tuesday, said the police had worked to reduce the number of collapsed criminal cases since his appointment, and he would continue to ensure officers take their duties seriously as they provide evidence for the courts.

"I will take necessary action because it makes no sense for us to go through the whole criminal justice system and then when we reach to the last line, a police officer may have dropped the ball. So this is being taken seriously and possible action will be taken on an officer or officers if they breached the regulation."