SoE order: contractor Danny Guerra leads gang plotting minister's assassination

BUSINESSMAN Danny Guerra was arrested on November 20 under state of emergency provisions by the Special Investigations Unit on allegations that he leads an organised crime group involved in arms trafficking, money laundering and illegal quarrying.

A detention order signed by Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander on November 19 accused Guerra of posing an imminent threat to public safety, including an alleged plot to assassinate a government minister.

The order states that Guerra’s group has access to high-powered firearms and intends to escalate attacks against rival gangs in public spaces, and is involved in the trafficking of illegal arms, money laundering and illegal quarrying.

It adds that preventive detention under Regulation 14 of the Emergency Powers Regulations 2025 is necessary to disrupt operational planning and prevent further violence.

Guerra was taken to the Eastern Correctional Rehabilitation Centre in Arouca. His son was also detained on a preventive detention order.

He and his son were previously charged on October 11 with unlawful processing of aggregate without a licence from the Ministry of Energy and granted $50,000 bail each by a justice of the peace. Guerra, manager of D Guerra Ltd and owner of several companies under the D Guerra Group of Companies, his son Garvin Guerra, 28, and 16 others were detained after a major police operation on October 9. That operation shut down an illegal quarry at Manuel Congo, Guanapo, and resulted in the seizure of a multimillion-dollar processing plant, trucks and other heavy machinery.

They have since appeared in court on the charges.

In August, Newsday reported that police and military intelligence agencies had uncovered a credible plot to assassinate Defence Minister Wayne Sturge, prompting heightened security for him and his relatives. The report said investigators said the threat, which involves several suspected conspirators linked to illegal quarrying and political influence, remains active despite recent disruptions.

Intelligence reports circulating among commanders of elite Defence Force and Police Service units described “a real and present danger” to Sturge, a criminal defence attorney and Toco/Sangre Grande MP who was appointed defence minister on May 3. The threat reportedly stems from his refusal to install individuals hand-picked by politically connected figures into state and constituency-level positions.

Among the suspects identified were a lawyer with close ties to the ruling UNC administration, two illegal quarry operators, and a senior military officer who, sources said, has been seen driving an SUV owned by one of the quarry operators. Police said intercepted telephone conversations and multiple incidents corroborated the threat.

On August 9, in Matura, Sturge’s security detail drew weapons when a white, heavily tinted Mazda 3 with four occupants approached the minister during a constituency visit. The car fled after the detail intervened and has been linked to at least three previous passes near the minister’s convoy.

Another incident on July 29 involved people hiding in brush near Wallerfield who hurled stones at Sturge’s convoy around 12.30 am, damaging an SUV’s windshield. Two private vehicles were also struck.

The threats surfaced at the time the government cancelled the annual Independence Day parade scheduled for August 31 at the Queen’s Park Savannah, Port of Spain, following security concerns tied to the ongoing state of emergency declared July 18. National Security agencies warned that organised criminal gangs operating from behind prison walls were planning to assassinate key justice and law enforcement officials.

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar announced on August 11 that Public Utilities Minister Barry Padarath, Rural Development and Local Government Minister Khadijah Ameen, and URP programme manager Feroze Khan had also received threats connected to reforms of employment programs such as Cepep and the URP.

On November 20, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) North-West and Special Operations Richard Smith confirmed the quarry boss's detention.

“He was arrested on a preventative-detention order,” Smith said. “Any person whom we believe may be a threat to public safety, we apply for a preventative detention order.”

He said Guerra will “most likely” remain in custody for the full 90 days permitted under the SoE while investigations continue.

Newsday spoke with a source close to Guerra, who claimed there was no factual basis for the detention and claimed it was linked to previous quarry-related charges.

“If a person is involved in illegal quarrying, they must be caught in the act. He was not,” the source claimed. “There’s no proof he was there. They are alleging he was illegally quarrying. The powers that be are just speculating.”

Asked if he believed Guerra was being targeted, the source replied, “I don’t know him (like that). That would be very speculative.”

He claimed during the April 28 election campaign, Guerra made more than $5 million in political donations to the "Toco and Sangre Grande campaign," but did not say which political party allegedly received the funds.