MP calls for probe into murder with regiment-issued ammo

CARONI East MP Dr Rishad Seecheran said forensic confirmation that the ammunition used to kill delivery driver Chandan Ramjit was regiment-issued is very disturbing.

Saying this may be an indication of a dangerous new development in Trinidad and Tobago’s unrelenting crime epidemic, Seecheran is calling for a thorough investigation.

He said both the police and TTDF must undertake a thorough and urgent investigation, “to uncover how regiment ammunition landed in the hands of his killers.”

He said they must also enquire whether any regiment personnel are involved in killings and other criminal activities and an account given on how much army-issued ammunition is missing from its armoury.

“If soldiers are found to be linked to rogue actions, there must be prompt measures to bring them to justice. Any sinister ties between criminals and members of the defence force reflect a grim evolution in the country’s continuing descent into anarchy.”

Ramjit, 52, a delivery driver from Hydraulic Trace, Caroni, was shot around 2.20 pm on Monday when he went to Piarco to drop off cement and other hardware items .

Some of the nine spent shells recovered bore the markings of the TT Regiment, forensic examination has confirmed.

“Caroni East has lost yet another law-abiding citizen to the surge of violent crime under the Rowley administration,” Seecheran said. “The murder of this businessman shows that the murderous trend is continuing in Central Trinidad and throughout the country.”

While the crime rate steadily climbs, he said National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds “continues to be negligent and unresponsive to this growing crisis. The murder count in Central Trinidad continues to rise, and each killing appears to embolden these perpetrators of violent crime."

He repeated a call for more crime-fighting resources in these areas, including a police post, CCTV cameras, and regular police patrols.

“The police service must also improve its intelligence-gathering and surveillance activities. The indifference by the government to this worsening emergency has led to widespread fear and is affecting people’s accustomed lifestyles and business operation,” he observed.

“I strongly urge the Rowley Administration to appreciate the current catastrophe in the communities of Caroni East and surrounding districts and to respond with the urgency and seriousness that the circumstances warrant.”