US to establish regional forensic science centre to assist with crime-fighting

THE US will assist the Caribbean in its forensic capabilities with help in the establishment of a regional forensic centre in St Lucia.

This was one of the things coming out of the Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) meeting in Nassau, Bahamas, at which Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley was in attendance.

The White House Fact Sheet on the event said, in order to bring the Caribbean up to international standards that will meet the International Organisation for Standardisation (IOS) accreditation, it will assist in establishing the forensic centre.

“The United States will help establish a regional forensics Centre of Excellence in St Lucia in addition to continued support to forensic laboratories in The Bahamas and the Dominican Republic. The project will support the collection of timely, reliable, and admissible forensic evidence to support criminal investigations and prosecutions, increase efficiency, and help lower case backlogs.”

The forensic science centre is part of a US$100 investment in the region to address crime and climate change.

The forensic centre comes two months after US Ambassador to TT Candace Bond said between 2010-2023, the US spent US$832 million on combating illegal guns in the region. Bond at the time was speaking at the closing ceremony of the three-day seminar on guns in the region hosted by the Caribbean Basin Security Institute (CBSI) in April.

During the meeting on Thursday, US Vice President Kamala Harris announced that the US Department of Justice will create a position called the Co-ordinator for Caribbean Firearms Prosecutions aimed at addressing gun violence in the region.

Harris said: “Too many people in all of our countries are dying from gun violence. I will reiterate that our administration is committed to disrupting gun trafficking. We are committed to interdict shipments of arms and ammunition and hold traffickers accountable.”

The co-ordinator for Caribbean Firearms Prosecutions will maximise information to support the prosecution of traffickers. This is not the first prosecutorial assistance TT has received from the US.

In March, National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds said TT will benefit from a special adviser recruited by the US to address the issue of human trafficking.

At a PNM rally in Barataria on March 9, Hinds said: “We have negotiated that they send a special adviser to us on the business of human trafficking to work closely with our counter trafficking units and our working groups to assist us in meeting the standard of their laws to bring about more convictions in the court.”

The 2022 Department of State Trafficking in Human Report placed TT on the tier two watch list for human trafficking. The grade was given because TT had compliance from officials in public office that negatively affected the country’s ability to prosecute and convict human traffickers.

Harris said apart from the financial assistance, the region will have legislative support through the bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which US President Joe Biden signed last year. The law includes new federal criminal offences for firearms trafficking and straw purchases.

“In addition, through the US law enforcement agencies, we are supporting a recently established Caribbean Crime Gun Intelligence Unit (CCGIU) in Trinidad and Tobago to train officials in firearms investigations and help bring criminals to justice.”

The unit, which was established last year, is currently eight-members strong and will operate through the Caribbean Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (Impacs) funded by the US.

The unit will collaborate with regional and international law enforcement agencies such as the Caribbean Community Implementation Agency for Crime and Security, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Homeland Security Investigations, Customs and Border Protection, the Bureau of Industry and Security and INTERPOL.

According to a White House fact sheet, the unit will “address critical firearms investigation training needs in the Caribbean” and help solve gun-related crime cases and deter gun crimes.

The fact sheet added that CCGIU will also provide training on real-time collection, management, and analysis of crime, gun intelligence and encourage information sharing with international law enforcement partners.