New Strategic Services Agency director appointed

FORMER head of the Special Branch Arthur Barrington will be appointed to head the Strategic Services Agency (SSA) on April 1.

Prime Minister Stuart Young, at a post-Cabinet briefing in St Ann's on March 20, said Brig Gen Anthony Phillips-Spencer's term as acting SSA director ends on April 1, and Barrington will be appointed as the permanent director.

Phillips-Spencer, who was the ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago in Washington, DC, will return to his diplomatic post.

Young explained this change is aimed at bringing stability to the agency, citing Barrington’s extensive experience in policing and intelligence.

On March 2, 2024, former SSA director Major Roger Best was placed on immediate administrative leave by former National Security minister Fitzgerald Hinds.

Between March and May, Best and 27 other SSA operatives were dismissed based on the contents of a confidential Special Branch report reviewed by the National Security Council, chaired by former prime minister Dr Keith Rowley.

Best was arrested on May 16 and two days later, Hinds announced that the Cabinet had advised the acting president to terminate Best's appointment.

The SSA, established in 1995, is authorised to intercept communications, including phone calls, WhatsApp messages and emails, after obtaining court orders under the Interception of Communications Act.

Initially, the agency's focus was on guiding national policies to combat illicit trafficking of dangerous drugs and related criminal activities.

In July 2024, Best, through his attorney Arden Williams, filed a freedom of information request seeking clarification on his dismissal. He asked for documentation related to his termination, including any evidence that he was interviewed before being removed from his position, the authority used for his dismissal and records related to his employment in the Volunteer Defence Force.

On July 3, Rowley revealed details of an audit by Phillips-Spencer, which uncovered significant issues within the SSA that had gone undetected for years.

The report, he said, indicated the agency was being influenced by a religious cult made up of highly trained military personnel involved in a plot to overthrow the government. Rowley later said state agencies had become entangled with criminal elements.

In an interview with Sunday Newsday, Best denied any wrongdoing, insisting that his dismissal was due to his resistance to political influence and not because he was an enemy of the State.