Chief Sec: Stolen cars used in Tobago murders

THA Chief Secretary Farley Augustine says almost all the 19 murders committed in Tobago for the year so far were carried out with the use of stolen vehicles.

He spoke on August 8 at a news conference at the Shaw Park Cultural Complex, which included THA Minority Leader Kelvon Morris, head of the Tobago Division ACP Collis Hazel and other security officials.

Augustine said an investigation revealed vehicles from three car-rental companies had fraudulent chassis numbers.

“It seems as though those with criminal intent have acquired the technology to be able to change the chassis numbers and to make it look as authentic as possible and create duplicates in the system, so that they are able to commit crimes undetected. And the TTPS actually reported that, for the murders that we have seen, that they have almost all been committed with the use of stolen vehicles on the island.”

Augustine said the pattern needs to be dealt with expeditiously and efficiently.

He added rental companies, when issuing vehicles, have a responsibility to take copies of drivers’ licences.

“We recognise that some of that is actually not happening.”

Augustine also gave an update on the road exercises licensing officers carried out in Tobago over the past two months.

“They were able to acquire, through their stop-and-search exercises, five illegal firearms.”

Saying 20 people had been held without drivers’ permits, he said last week alone, at least four vehicles were pulled over with either duplicated chassis numbers or registration that appeared to be fraudulent.

“So far, internal audit has determined that two of them were, in fact, fraudulent and those two are already taken off the registry. The audit is being done for the other two.”

The licensing officers, Augustine said, also were able to apprehend people wanted for robberies and shootings.

At present, there are five licensing officers in Tobago, three of whom are law-enforcement officers and the other two working in administration.

“Once every three months they get additional support from their colleagues in Trinidad until such time as they are able to increase the human resource, human capital, at the licensing (office) in Tobago.”

On a separate issue, Hazel said the joint police and army patrols, which were introduced several weeks ago, as a response to escalating crime, will be a feature of the policing landscape.

“This initiative that has been introduced in the Scarborough area is one in which you will see operating not only within Scarborough, but other districts throughout Tobago...With the resources that are available to us, we would ensure that such patrols continue.”

Hazel warned, though, that the support would be dependent on the resources available.

“I always tell everyone that crime is not static. It is a dynamic focus from time to time, taking place in different areas, and therefore, we tend to shift our resources in order to treat with the problem at hand.

“So if it is affecting us most, as it is doing, in the Scarborough area, our focus of heavy resources would be placed in that area.

“I give the members of the Tobago public the assurance that we will be seeing this constant presence of a joint relationship between the TT Police Service working in collaboration with the TT Defence Force as we utilise a multi-pronged approach.”

At the security meeting on August 8, Hazel said, it was decided that “a united force” was needed to dismantle gangs and other criminal elements on the island.