DEATH SQUADS TO BLAME?

In the first six months of this year, 29 people — 2 women and 27 men — have been executed, mainly in Laventille, in what police have reported to be gang warfare.

But questions are being raised about whether some of the deaths are being carried out by either a police death squad or a private one, as alleged in the Senate Tuesday evening by UNC Senate leader, Wade Mark. On Tuesday Mark said: “I would like to ask the Minister of National Security whether there is an official death squad in the Police Service? I want him to answer that. I also want him to tell the national population whether there is a privately organised death squad in this country? I see outside the Police Service, a private death squad has emerged killing people at will and no-one has arrested these people. We want the Government to tell us whether there is a privately organised and run death squad supported by the Government in this country?” He said Trinidad and Tobago had now reached the stage of Grenada under the Mongoose Gang, Guyana under the House of Israel, and Haiti under the Tonton Macoutes, concluding: “This is frightening.”

However, yesterday police sources strongly denied Mark’s allegations. Deputy Police Commissioner Trevor Paul yesterday called on Mark to provide evidence of a death squad operating within the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service. “Mr Mark may have to tell me more about the death squad because I am not aware there is one.  He will have to give me information. He probably has information that is unknown to me,” Paul said. He appealed to Mark to come forward and provide information so the police service could deal with the death squad. “We are always anxious to get information on police officers,” he added. Paul said he could not give an exact reason for the gang-related murders, but other senior officers said it’s a fight for turf relating to the NHA, URP and CEPEP programmes. However, Paul admits to being concerned about the gang-related murders.  “They are senseless and we have stated from time-to-time that it concerns us,” Paul said. Moreover, Paul said the police are even more concerned with the number of guns used in crimes.  He said they will relentlessly try to get the guns off the street.

President of the Second Division Association, acting Insp Christopher Holder, was amazed at Mark’s death squad statement. He said the association is becoming wary of politicians who use the police service as footballs and scapegoats. “It is the same service that will have to come to their rescue,” Holder said. Reiterating the point that there is no death squad in the police service, Holder said officers operate within the laws and police can only use lethal force in protecting their lives and those of other citizens. Holder advised Mark not to use parliamentary priviledges to make “bogus claims.” Senior police officers said that the ongoing fights among the gangs are related to the spoils of money emanating from the Government’s unemployment relief programmes.  They said some gangs feel cheated and as a result resort to killing each other so that no one ends up with the money. Newsday also understands that there is a kidnap link to the gang-related murders, where some kidnapping groups are upset that others have gotten larger amounts of ransom money. 

Police also said there appears to be a social link to the murders in the country, particularly in Laventille and surrounding environs. Senior officers stated that most of the women in those areas are unemployed and as a result depend on their siblings to provide for them. This, they said is evident when the dependents of these women end up dead.  Most of the women say they were unaware that the deceased were involved in criminal activities. “Check their statements.  All of them deny knowledge that their son, brother, father were involved in wrongdoings,” a senior officer said. Paul, as well as other senior officers appealed to members of the public to assist in the fight against crime by contacting the Crime Stoppers. They said that their identities would be protected. Few of these crimes have been solved.