Police officers of the Eastern Division, acting on a tip off from a call to Crime Stoppers, went to the 66 mile mark on the Manzanilla Beach on Saturday night and discovered four crocus bags filled with cocaine worth $1.5 million, washed ashore.

Officers from the Manzanilla Police Station responded promptly to the information given to them by Crime Stoppers and discovered four crocus bags floating close to the shoreline at the 66 mile mark. A search of the bags led to the discovery of the cocaine wrapped in clear plastic, as well as in thick black plastic. The crocus bags contained Spanish writings suggesting that the drugs may have come from Venezuela. Yesterday, around midday, a fifth crocus bag containing cocaine was discovered close to the same area where the other four bags were found. The crocus bags with the cocaine were taken to the Sangre Grande Police Station yesterday where it was checked, weighed and photographed. Officers of the Organised Crime and Narcotics Unit were also alerted. They went to the scene of the drug find and carried out extensive investigations.

Investigators told Newsday that although no one was arrested they believe that the bags with the drugs were dumped, because of the roadblocks mounted from Friday night to yesterday by officers of the Eastern Division. They feel that the drugs were left floating at the beachfront for safe keeping until the roadblocks were completed. The area where the drugs were found is not frequented by bathers or members of the public. Investigators said that although the crocus bags were left floating on the beachfront, the drugs were protected at all times because of the plastic used and the manner in which it was wrapped. They believe that the drugs were dropped off by boat and were supposed to be transported to various destinations on Saturday night. Senior officers confirmed that several roadblocks were put in place on Friday and Saturday due to various activities in the Eastern Division. Up until late yesterday, officers of the Eastern Division combed the entire sea front close to the 66 mile mark for more crocus bags containing drugs. Snr Supt Randolph Protain, the Head of the Eastern Division, is spearheading investigations.

After being robbed of one boat and three engines by four Spanish-speaking men wearing masks and armed with guns, 14 fishermen drank salt water and ate roasted fish to satisfy their thirst and hunger.

They were eventually rescued by six Guyanese nationals whose vessel was passing in the vicinity in which they were stranded. Nine of them were Moruga fishermen missing since last  Friday. The nine men who left the Grand Chemin Beach around 4 am Friday were finally able to get assistance from Guyanese nationals in a vessel passing in the area — some 15 miles off the Grand Chemin coast, Moruga. Captain of the “Marissa” boat, Jerry Silverton spoke with Newsday. Silverton recalled that while at sea around 10 am Friday, around 20 miles off Grand Chemin beach they saw a vessel they knew  as the “Great White” approaching. He said they knew the boat so were not worried.

As the boat got nearer they noticed the men had wool caps pulled over their faces and were holding machine guns in their hands. Two of the four men were lying low in the boat. According to Silverton, one of the men fired a shot into the air. Silverton said he and the other eight fishermen froze. Two of the Spanish-speaking men jumped into his boat, the “Marissa”  and proceeded to tie  the hands and feet of the three occupants with ropes. Two of the masked Spanish men then jumped into the boat “Mr Cola” and did the same with its occupants. The other three fishermen on the third vessel “Cobra,” were also tied up. The  six men tied up in the two boats were then thrown into the  “Marissa” boat. Here, all nine fishermen with hands and feet tied, were bundled on top each other. The only English Silverton said the men  spoke were “snacks” as they took the several packs of snacks they had.

During this time Silverton said no one retaliated. He said, “We  could not do anything, men was pointing guns in we face. Meh hands get numb and blood stop circulating.” Silverton said the entire incident happened in approximately 15 minutes. The four masked men then made their escape in the “Cobra” vessel. The Spanish-speaking men also tied the three boats together. They then escaped in an easterly direction Silverton said  with the Yamaha 115 horse power engine of the “Marissa” valued at $35,000 and the engines of the “Great White” and “Mr Cola” each valued at $24,000. Silverton remembers that two of the men succeeded in freeing themselves. He said  there was one piece of wood in the boat and the men took turns paddling their way from the area. Shortly after midday he said they reached the Scattermang mangrove where they found  the five occupants of “Great White” who had been left there after the four Spanish men robbed them of their vessel earlier in the day.

Silverton said that on Saturday morning all 14 of them left in the “Marissa” boat, using ten makeshift oars  to paddle their way across the waters. Rescue and relief came hours after around 2.30 pm when they noticed a vessel  a great distance away. They shouted out and waved their hands to the men in the boat. Six Guyanese nationals in the boat he said reached them within minutes to assist. They returned to shores late Saturday evening  with the “Marissa.” Yesterday,  some of the fishermen went back to sea to retrieve the “Mr Cola” boat. However, the men have not expressed any intention of abandoning their risky trade.

A 39-year-old father of three was gunned down at his Gonzales home on Saturday night.

His death is the 148th for the year so far. Police reports revealed that around 7 pm on Saturday Steve Gilkes was at his Quarry Road, Gonzales home when he was confronted by a masked man armed with a gun. Reports revealed that Gilkes, who is a member of the Bobo Shanti movement, attempted to run away but was shot several times. In his flight he collided with a glass window and suffered several cuts about the body. The bleeding man collapsed and was assisted by relatives who took him to the nearby Port-of-Spain General Hospital. Gilkes was pronounced dead on arrival.

The Belmont Police Station was alerted and a party of policemen went to the scene. The area was cordoned off and a search was carried out for the killer to no avail. When Newsday visited the scene relatives said that Gilkes belonged to the Boboshanti movement and never troubled anyone. Relatives expressed shock over the manner in while Gilkes was killed. They told Newsday that some members of the Boboshanti refused to assist when they heard of the shooting. Neighbours of the dead man claimed that Gilkes kept to himself and as far as they were concerned he was not involved in any illicit activities. An autopsy will be carried out today at the Forensic Science Centre.

A MORUGA FAMILY is pleading with the Commissioner of Police and other authorities to assist them in finding two  brothers who are believed to have been murdered in the Moruga forest.

Chris Ramlal went missing in late June, and his younger brother, Keeshan Chabelia, who went in search of him three weeks later, has also disappeared without a trace. The family fears that they may have innocently fallen victim to marijuana traffickers in the forest, and possibly murdered. An older brother of the two men, Victor Ramlal, complained to Newsday that the Moruga police were not treating the cases with any importance. A disgruntled Victor told Newsday: “Nearly seven weeks have passed and my two brothers are missing. Up to now the police have not taken a proper report about what happened, or making any searches in the area.”

Last month, Newsday reported that Chris, 38, a gardener, disappeared on June 27 when, according his relatives, he left the family home at 11 Figaro Trace, Moruga, to go to his garden some four miles away. By the next day when he did not return, Chabelia, 23, and other villagers mounted a search party and went looking for him in the forest. On August 16, Chabelia left home around 5.30 am and went on a one-man crusade to find his older brother. Chabelia was last seen buying a pack of cigarettes and walking into the bush with a cutlass. Victor believes that Chabelia, like Chris, may have witnessed some illegal activity, and both men were killed.  “Keeshan may have seen or known something about whoever killed Chris, and Keeshan paid for that too”. The family is appealing to anyone who might have information about Ramlal or Chabelia to inform the Moruga police. Investigations are continuing.

THA’s Secretary for Education, Orville London, warns that there are likely to be some glitches at the start of the new school year as a result of extensive renovations to some of the schools during the summer vacation.

He reported that there were problems faced during the exercise including the unavailability of material and some schools, chiefly the Belle Garden AC Primary and Scarborough Secondary schools, may not be ready for opening on September 2. He gave the assurance that contractors were working alongside the education division to fast track the process. London reported too that although contractors may have them ready by the end of August, the new Mason Hall and Scarborough Methodist Primary Schools will not be occupied until the end of September. He noted, however, that this was not likely to create any problems since ample accommodation had been arranged for the students.

“Considering that these are new schools, it is better that we create an environment that is not going to be one where the students and teachers could be disadvantaged and therefore we prefer to err on the side of caution.” he explained. On a more positve note, the Secretary said that the new Goodwood and Mason Hall Secondary schools were complete and ready for the new term but that they were trying to “fine tune” the transportation system. He was optimistic that the system will begin running smoothly within the first month or so. London will be meeting with school supervisors on Monday to discuss a preliminary update on the schools which was requested earlier last week.

TWO MEN have died, and three others are fighting for their lives at hospital, in separate road accidents over the weekend.

The fatalities were: Harry Balgobin, 50, of St Croix Road, Lengua; and Akilo Rahim, 20, of St John’s Village, near San Fernando. In the first incident, Balgobin, a father of two, died after he was struck by a speeding car and pitched 20 feet into the air. Reports said that Balgobin was headed to an all fours championship match at Arena Village with three others—Zaheed Khan, 36; Rodney Nelson, and Zammil Hosein, all of Princes Town—in a car driven by Khan. According to police, Balgobin was standing at the back of Khan’s vehicle, which was parked at the roadside, when another man driving a Toyota Cressida ploughed into the back of the car, and Balgobin was flung into the air. The Cressida then slammed into an electricity pole. Balgobin died after his body  landed on the road. The driver of the Cressida is in critical condition at hospital.  Balgobin’s wife, Sursattie, 38, believes that her husband had predicted his death. She said: “Last week he kept telling me he is on death row. Now look what happen.” Sursattie said when he left home on Saturday night the last thing she told him was “be careful.” The Balgobins had two children —  Reshma, 14, and Videsh, 11. Erin Police are conducting investigations.

In the second incident, 20-year-old Rahim was killed when he and a friend were leaving the Guayafest celebrations at Guayaguayare early Sunday morning. The fatal accident occurred around 3 am when Rahim and Colin Trotman, of St Charles Village, Princes Town, were headed north along the Guayaguayare Main Road in a car driven by Trotman. Police said upon reaching Toby Bridge the driver of the car lost control and veered off the road, striking pedestrian Walcott Marrain, 40, of Coronation Road, Sangre Grande. The car then plunged into a ravine, and Rahim, the front seat passenger, died on the spot. Trotman and Marrain were rushed to the Sangre Grande District Hospital where they are warded in critical condition. At the Rahim home yesterday, the deceased’s mother, Betty, said she was not aware that her son, the second of her four children, went to lime at Guayaguayare on Saturday night. Betty, who has been ailing for sometime, told Newsday: “I know he went to a Sports and Family Day in the Community Centre (which is two houses away)”. The grieving mother cried: “He was a very loving person. He had his ways, but he was always there for me, especially when I was sick.” Rahim’s younger brother, Elvis, 18, was the last relative to have seen him alive. Elvis said: “About 9 pm I met him by the community centre and he was drunk. He told me he got a car for us to go to Guayafest, but when I told him I am not going, he left”. Mayaro Police are continuing investigations. 

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO does not need more doctors to remedy its ailing health sector, it needs more nurses. This was the declaration yesterday from former Junior Health Minister Dr Fuad Khan. Khan told Newsday the country really needs more nurses who are qualified in certain areas of medicine and Government should bring legislation to amend the Nursing Council Act and allow the Council to bring in nurses from other countries, including Cuba, to fill the necessary gaps in the health sector.

However Khan claimed that Government would not touch the Council because it was viewed as a “PNM body”. He reiterated that Government’s plans to bring in Cuban and UNDP doctors amounted to nothing more than Health Minister Colm Imbert’s “vindictiveness” against local doctors. The Opposition UNC had vehemently opposed amendments to the Medical Board Act during the last parliamentary session, claiming that the panel established under the amended Act would allow “a free for all” in the issuing of medical licences to doctors. On Friday, Imbert said “there is no possibility” of such a situation arising because the procedure for doctors’ registration was clearly defined under the Act and the panel has not issued any licences.

On the issue of tissue transplant legislation, Khan recalled that the UNC passed the Human Tissue Transplant Act 2000 and only parliamentary approval was required to effect the necessary regulations. Khan said while that process would be “straightforward”, he was not optimistic of headway being made in this area when Parliament resumes next month. Asked what he expected from the Minister, Khan replied: “More fight and more war for doctors.” Speaking in Parliament on July 4, Imbert said: “With regard to the legislation relating to the Tissue Transplant Bill, recently I saw the final version of the legislation. I assure the honourable Members of this House that we will soon be bringing the legislation relating to tissue transplants so that we could proceed with the very laudable concept of harvesting organs from persons who may have passed away, thus allowing other persons to have a fair chance at a healthy and productive life.”

FORMER Junior Health Minister Dr Fuad Khan yesterday claimed Health Minister Colm Imbert’s relentless attacks against the Medical Professionals Association of Trinidad and Tobago (MPATT) are part of a plan to make the Public Services Association (PSA) the sole representative union for the nation’s health care workers.

Khan told Newsday that when Parliament resumes early next month, Imbert plans to bring legislation that will make certain amendments to the Regional Health Authorities (RHA) Act. According to Khan, that legislation is intended to make the PSA the recognised bargaining unit for all of the country’s health care professionals and Imbert is attacking MPATT because he perceives MPATT to be “a UNC union” and was exposing deficiencies within the health sector. The Barataria/San Juan MP also slammed a statement from the Health Ministry which said MPATT was causing panic by releasing data from medical laboratories about persons being warded at the San Fernando General Hospital with a “mystery virus”. He said there was clearly a problem and Imbert should deal with it.

Khan criticised the Health Ministry for saying the Trinidad Public Health Laboratory  (TPHL) and Ministry’s National Surveillance Unit were the only authorised institutions in Trinidad which record data on viral illnesses. He said the TPHL was the authorised institution “for the Ministry” but not for the country. Khan explained that before the UNC came to office in 1995, CAREC and other labs in TT conducted similar tests but only after getting the data from competent and relevant authorities. The UNC MP added that the results of these tests have often been sent abroad to be verified. Khan also stated that the TPHL is currently “in a dilapidated state” and the UNC was trying to improve the facilities there when it demitted office.

Khan had no problem with legislation being brought to Parliament to regularise “unauthorised laboratories” from misusing data but felt that Imbert did not have to re-invent the wheel. He revealed that prior to the 2001 general elections, the former government was in the final stages of drafting the Health Services Quality Act which would “encompass all acts of medicine.” Khan added that all Imbert had to do was bring this Act to Parliament next month.