分类： society

In an unexpected turn of events that has left a local Catholic community both relieved and puzzled, two sacred ceremonial monstrances stolen from St Mary’s RC Church have been quietly returned to a neighboring parish. The precious liturgical items, valued at a total of $15,000, were discovered early Friday morning inside a black tote bag resting on the entrance steps of St James Church, found by parishioners arriving for the 6:15 a.m. daily mass. Along with the returned vessels, finders also discovered an unexplained $100 cash and an unsigned note, the contents of which have not been publicly disclosed.

The incident of theft itself unfolded just over a week prior, on the morning of June 2. Father Emmanuel Pierre, widely known to his congregation as Father Mannie, had arrived at St Mary’s around 5 a.m. to prepare for the day’s services when he encountered an unexpected intruder inside the church building. The intruder was masked and fully clad in a white protective overall, and the priest immediately challenged the trespasser, shouting “I caught you! I caught you!” Startled by the confrontation, the intruder fled the building on foot, jumped into a waiting getaway car, and sped away from the scene before any bystanders could intervene. Remarkably, Father Pierre was left unharmed during the encounter, though the theft was a significant blow to the parish.

The stolen items are not ordinary religious artifacts: monstrances are sacred vessels used in Roman Catholic liturgy to hold the consecrated Eucharist, most prominently during public Corpus Christi processions and times of Eucharistic adoration. The theft occurred just a few days before the annual Corpus Christi feast, one of the few occasions each year when the items are required for major public services, leaving the parish scrambling to arrange alternatives ahead of the celebration. Following the discovery of the returned monstrances Friday morning, Father Pierre immediately contacted local law enforcement to update them on the development, as the investigation into the original theft remains ongoing. Members of the St Mary’s parish have expressed profound gratitude that the sacred items have been returned, bringing an unexpected close to an incident that shook their small community.

In a move timed alongside parliamentary debate over a three-month extension of the country’s state of emergency, Trinidad and Tobago’s state authorities have issued 11 new preventive detention orders (PDOs) targeting alleged members and leaders of transnational and local organized criminal networks. The orders, covering legal notices 410 through 420, were published shortly before 8 p.m. on Wednesday, and bear the signature of Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander, in full compliance with Paragraph 2 of the Schedule to the 2026 Emergency Powers Regulations.

Under Regulation 14 of the same legislation, PDOs are authorized to hold individuals preventively when intelligence indicates their actions would threaten public safety. The signatures on the 11 new orders were finalized between May 19 and June 5 of this year. All 11 detainees have been publicly identified by authorities: Akeem Cole, Akino Warner, Akeema Ferguson, Eric Goring, Wayne Havelock, Curtis Isaac, Jasiniho Boneo, Nicholas Sumner, Mark Williams, Shane Dindial, and Anika Chadee. Two of the 11 detainees are women, while three are accused of holding top leadership positions in their respective criminal operations.

According to official legal notices, all detainees are tied to organized criminal groups active across multiple Trinidadian districts, including Port of Spain, Morvant, Tunapuna, Central Trinidad, Claxton Bay, Couva, Chaguanas, Gasparillo, Marabella, and Piparo. The two women detained face specific, serious allegations tied to enabling violent criminal activity. Akeema Ferguson, also known by the alias “Kima” and a resident of Longdenville and Edinburgh 500, is accused of providing real-time surveillance intelligence to a criminal syndicate during armed home invasion operations across Central Trinidad. The second woman, Anika Chadee of Piparo, is alleged to have participated in a criminal group’s plots to acquire additional firearms and carry out a public attack, after authorities previously seized a weapon and ammunition from her home.

Three detainees are flagged as senior gang leaders. Akino Warner, widely known as “Boogsie”, is named as the head of the notorious Bayshore 3 Gang. Wayne Havelock, who uses multiple aliases including “Joey” and “Haveblock”, is identified as the leader of a large-scale organized criminal group and narcotics trafficking network active across Claxton Bay, St Margaret’s, Couva, and Chaguanas. Shane Dindial, also of Piparo, is the third accused leadership associate, with a prior history of murder investigation and a recent offense of illegal firearm possession; intelligence indicates he was seeking to acquire a second weapon to carry out a public attack.

Multiple other detainees are described as armed enforcers or shooters for their respective gangs. Eric Goring of St Joseph is an alleged enforcer for the Bangladesh Gang, a group linked to shootings, assaults, home invasions, and drug and firearms trafficking. Goring is also accused of participating in targeted attacks against rival gang factions. Curtis Isaac, also known as “Donkey” and “Road” from North Malick, Morvant, serves as an armed shooter and enforcer for the Seven Gang, and is accused of patrolling rival territory, protecting gang turf, and targeting opposing members amid ongoing violent conflict in the Morvant area. Jasiniho Boneo, alias “Elmo” of Tunapuna, is named as a core operative and armed enforcer for the ABG Resistance group, and is tied to a March 22 armed crime spree across Tunapuna and El Dorado, as well as a plot to target a commercial establishment near the Tunapuna Market.

Lower-ranking gang members facing detention include Akeem Cole, a member of the 6 Gang based in Clifton Towers, Mt Hope, and East Dry River. The 6 Gang is accused of running extortion rackets, trafficking narcotics and illegal firearms, carrying out armed robberies, and plotting retaliatory attacks against its bitter rival, the Seven Gang, following the killing of a 6 Gang member known as “Dappa Six”. Nicholas Sumner (alias “Izy” and “Mr Spin It”) and Mark Williams are both listed as members of the SIXX Gang operating out of East Dry River, a syndicate linked to armed robbery, motor vehicle theft, and firearms offenses. The two men are accused of planning new armed robberies to raise funds for ongoing gang operations and support for members already incarcerated.

Havelock, the Claxton Bay-based network leader, faces particularly severe allegations: authorities claim he oversees a smuggling operation that uses maritime routes, mangrove channels, and unregistered vessels to move narcotics and firearms across borders. He is also accused of authorizing contract killings and retaliatory attacks against both rival gang members and law enforcement officers. His counterpart Warner, leader of Bayshore 3 Gang, is tied to both local and international trafficking of narcotics and firearms, with intelligence linking his network to a recent large-scale narcotics seizure intended for both domestic and international distribution.

The head of one of the Caribbean region’s leading public sector trade unions has moved to quash swirling rumors and misinformation surrounding stalled wage talks for public health workers, confirming that negotiations have hit a long-awaited key turning point.

Felisha Thomas, president of the Public Services Association (PSA), made the clarifying remarks in an official statement shared to the union’s Facebook page on Wednesday, pushing back against growing online and offline commentary that claimed the organization had sidelined employees of regional health authorities (RHAs) and left their salary demands out of ongoing bargaining processes. Thomas dismissed these claims as deliberate bad-faith attempts to stoke internal conflict and manufacture unnecessary anxiety among frontline and administrative health workers.

“Let me state clearly and unequivocally: the PSA has not forgotten RHA workers, nor have you been left out of negotiations,” Thomas emphasized in her address.

The collective bargaining process for RHA employees was formally launched by the union back in January 2026, when PSA tabled its formal proposals to authorities. The union’s demands include a 10% across-the-board base salary increase, as well as the permanent consolidation of the existing Cost-of-Living Allowance (COLA) into workers’ base pay.

Thomas confirmed that since the submission of these proposals, the process has adhered strictly to the long-standing, standardized administrative framework that has guided all prior RHA wage negotiations. Under the established rules, after the union submits its demands, regional health authorities must first conduct detailed financial modeling to calculate three core cost components: the ongoing annual recurrent expenditure that would come from implementing the revised salary scale, the value of back pay owed to currently active RHA employees, and the total arrears due to retired RHA workers who are covered by the current negotiating period.

These granular calculations, which are drawn directly from data on the total number of active and retired workers impacted by the new salary terms, are a non-negotiable prerequisite for moving the proposal up the administrative chain of command. Once finalized by the RHAs, the data is passed to the Ministry of Health for review before being forwarded to the Human Resource Advisory Committee, which issues formal guidance on next steps for implementation.

In a major update for workers, Thomas confirmed that the Ministry of Health has now completed all required calculations and formally submitted the full package of documentation to the Chief Personnel Officer (CPO) for the next phase of review. “This represents a significant milestone in the process and confirms that negotiations continue to progress through the established channels,” Thomas said.

The PSA president acknowledged that workers are eager for a resolution to the years-long wait for salary adjustments, but noted that the union cannot skip mandatory administrative procedures to speed up the process unilaterally. Even so, she stressed that union representatives have maintained constant engagement with government officials at every stage of the process, and are monitoring every development closely to keep the process moving forward.

Thomas once again pushed back against outside attempts to create frustration among RHA staff, reiterating that the current timeline and process match exactly the framework that has been used to complete and implement all previous RHA wage agreements.

Based on the progress achieved so far, the PSA expects that the CPO will issue formal implementation instructions in the near future, paving the way for final arrangements including the rollout of revised salaries.

“The PSA remains fully committed to securing a fair and equitable outcome for all RHA workers. We recognise the invaluable contribution made by healthcare professionals, administrative staff, technical personnel, support workers and all employees who continue to deliver critical services throughout the health sector,” Thomas said.

She closed by urging union members to ignore unfounded speculation and deliberate misinformation designed to split workers and distract from the ongoing bargaining process, reaffirming that the PSA will continue to prioritize RHA workers’ interests and provide timely updates as the negotiation process moves forward.