Police: 2 Carnival murders solved

TWO of the murders which took place during Carnival Tuesday in St James and Sangre Grande have been solved say police.

At a media briefing at the Police Administrative building on March 11, acting DCP operations Curt Simon said police were concerned about the murder rate, including the seven murders that took place during the Carnival weekend and immediately after.

“I know that over that last weekend there were seven murders that persons were very much concerned about, and we too, the TTPS (TT Police Service), we too have some concerns when we see murders take on that splurge after that appearance of that reduction.”

He described it as out-of-the-ordinary when compared with the rest of the year.

On Carnival Tuesday, 30-year-old Venezuelan Irvin Joaquin Mayora was shot and killed in St James. A 61-year-old Chase Village man was charged for the murder. Also, 18-year-old Prince Charles, a national youth boxer, was stabbed to death in Sangre Grande that night.

Simon said an additional murder was solved and the police got instructions to charge them on March 10.

ACP North West Garvin Henry added that police officers always lamented the loss of life but found solace in solving murders.

He gave the example nine-year-old Aneilia Butler who died in a fire at her Beetham Gardens home on February 23, 2022. Juman Ali Sahadath , 35, was charged with her murder and appeared in court on March 5.

Also, Akeem Simon, 20, of Diego Martin was charged with the murder of David Stanley Gregoir, 29, on March 10. Gregoir was found wounded on Ariapita Avenue on February 15 and taken to the hospital where he died.

Acting Commissioner of Police Junior Benjamin pointed out the decrease in homicides compared to previous years. He said from January-March 11 there were 74, while January-March 11, 2024 had 107 murders and January-March 11, 2023 had 118.

He added that there were 14 murders for the month so far, compared with 21 in 2024.

“We continue to see an incremental decline in terms of the number of murders that is (sic) taking place in TT, and this is only because of the hard work and commitment of the Police Service and other law-enforcement agencies.”

He said the police wished there were no murders, but its officers were dealing with “the murder situation” in a decisive manner, putting different strategies in place.

Benjamin said he met with divisional commanders and regional ACPs that morning and determined the murders were related to several factors – 19 of the murders were gang-related, 17 were from altercations and 15 were related to drugs.

In addition, he said 55 per cent of the weapons used in murders were firearms, and police were implementing various crime prevention and intervention strategies to deal with the various factors.

“Therefore, the TTPS, we continue to wage that war and we continue to ask the citizens to assist us as we continue to at least try to get those illegal firearms off the streets.

“And we are saying to persons, if you know, if you see something, please say something. Come help us, because we recognise that the more firearms we have off the streets, that is more lives that we are saving, and we need you to really work with us to ensure that this year that we really would have at least one of our greatest years ever.”

Reporting on the state of emergency (SoE), Simon said the police conducted 85 operations in the previous 48 hours, recovered two firearms, the 131st since the beginning of the SoE, and over 3,000 rounds of ammunition.

Since the beginning of the SoE, police have conducted 3,649 operations targeting priority offenders. Benjamin said 57 detention orders were granted, leading to the detention of 44 people and resulting in drug seizures and finds, including around 328kg of marijuana.

“I’ve heard the banter. Persons are concerned that after the SoE no one would be charged and so on. That is not (the case). So I wish to debunk that conversation right here, right now, that this police service, we are looking at bringing charges, a number of charges to persons who are detained.”

He said detainees were being investigated for various crimes including murder, conspiracy to murder and several gang offences, and police would continue to put pressure on the criminal element.

“Whilst the TTPS is not making any brag, and I repeat, we are not making any brag about the reduction (of murders), because you heard the commissioner state that we are not satisfied with even when one murder occurs.

“But we must take into consideration that there is something positive happening as we are looking at the numbers, that they are lower than what we have come to expect, even traditionally, in terms of what is happening on that crime front in TT.”

Asked for an update on the investigation into suspended Police Commissioner Erla Harewood-Christopher, Benjamin told reporters the police were continuing to actively investigate the matter based on the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

He said Carnival and other issues delayed the process which, in itself, took time.

“This is not something that we could just run and just do. Everything that we do, we do it to the level of excellence, and therefore the process itself takes time. And if you are ever a police officer, patience is one of the greatest virtues that we develop.”