分类： society

After a weeks-long legal proceeding at the Port of Spain High Court, a San Juan resident has been cleared of serious assault charges stemming from a 2019 incident in which he was accused of choking a woman at his private residence. On Wednesday, a nine-member jury delivered a unanimous not guilty verdict before Justice Sherene Murray-Bailey, dismissing two alternative counts of grievous bodily harm brought against 44-year-old Stefan O’Brien.

The charges date back to July 13, 2019, when prosecutors from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions alleged that O’Brien first encountered the complainant, Zakiya Penn, in the early hours of the morning along Ariapita Avenue. According to the prosecution’s narrative, the pair left the area together in O’Brien’s vehicle, after which he drove them back to his San Juan home. Prosecutors claimed that once inside, O’Brien made unwanted sexual advances toward Penn, then physically attacked her by choking her on two separate occasions.

Penn took the stand during the trial to confirm the prosecution’s account, stating that she ultimately managed to flee the property, flag down help from a neighbor who lived close by, and was transported to a local medical facility for treatment the same morning. To build their case, state prosecutors led by attorneys Chenelle Moe and Roger Hinds presented testimony from Penn, her then-boyfriend Rakeem Moses, independent witness Kyle Caesar, and medical evidence provided by examining physician Dr Christiana Ramnarine.

Dr Ramnarine told the court that her examination of Penn conducted hours after the alleged incident revealed visible redness and bruising along Penn’s neck, as well as small hemorrhages in both of her eyes. Prosecutors argued that these clinical findings aligned directly with Penn’s claim that O’Brien had applied sustained, forceful pressure to her neck during the attack.

O’Brien has consistently denied all accusations against him from the time he was first charged. Represented by court-appointed public defenders Ayanna Norville-Modeste and Janeil Chuck, O’Brien told the court that Penn’s entire version of events was entirely fabricated, and that the violent encounter she described never took place at his home.

Over the course of the trial, the defense team systematically challenged the credibility of every witness called by the prosecution, identifying multiple inconsistencies between Penn’s testimony and the physical medical evidence entered into the court record. They also raised major questions about the conduct of the initial police investigation, pointing out several key investigative shortcomings: investigators never obtained nearby CCTV footage that could have corroborated or refuted Penn’s account of leaving the area with O’Brien, nor did they collect fingerprint or DNA evidence from the scene of the alleged attack. The defense also noted significant unexplained delays in progressing the case from initial investigation to trial.

Norville-Modeste and Chuck further emphasized that the medical findings documented by Dr Ramnarine did not support the extreme severity of the assault Penn alleged, and added that medical records confirmed Penn remained clinically stable immediately after the incident, contradicting claims of a near-fatal strangulation attack. After more than six hours of deliberation, the jury ultimately accepted the defense’s arguments and returned the not guilty verdict on both counts.

A brutal midday attack in the Trinidad and Tobago community of Malick has left three men dead and three other people wounded, triggering an extensive homicide investigation from local law enforcement. The targeted shooting unfolded just after 1 p.m. on Friday along Upper Seventh Avenue, catching residents off guard and plunging the quiet neighborhood into chaos. According to official police accounts, a group of people had gathered casually in a residential yard when a white sport utility vehicle pulled up to the area. Three masked, armed suspects stepped out of the vehicle and immediately opened fire on the group, unleashing volleys of bullets from high-powered military-style rifles. Panic erupted as dozens of shots echoed through residential streets, forcing nearby residents to scramble for shelter behind walls and inside their homes to avoid stray gunfire.

When the gunmen fled the scene and gunfire stopped, first responders arrived to find five people with life-altering gunshot wounds. Oren Danglade, 38, who was also known by the street name “Grimey”, had sustained multiple gunshot injuries and was pronounced dead directly at the attack site. Akins Phillip, Keron Paul, and two other unidentified men were rushed to local medical facilities for emergency care, while a third injured victim—who had been left in critical condition—was transported by police personnel directly to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mt Hope. Tragically, Phillip did not survive his injuries, passing away while undergoing emergency intervention at Port of Spain General Hospital. Shortly after, Paul also succumbed to his wounds at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, bringing the total number of fatalities from the attack to three.

As of late Friday evening, the two surviving male gunshot victims remained hospitalized in stable condition for ongoing care. A woman who suffered a grazing wound from a stray bullet also received outpatient medical treatment for her minor injury and has since been released. Local residents told responding investigators that they recognized the rapid, deafening barrage of gunfire shortly after 1 p.m. Once the shooting stopped, they ventured out to check the area and found the victims clustered near a pink-painted house along the main roadway. Detectives from the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service’s Northern Division and specialized homicide unit have already processed the crime scene, collecting bullet casings, witness statements, and forensic evidence as they work to unpack the possible motive for the public attack.

This triple killing has pushed the national murder toll for Trinidad and Tobago in 2026 to 162. For comparison, the country recorded 168 homicide deaths over the same period last year, marking a slight downward trend in overall murders, but reigniting longstanding public conversations about violent gun crime plaguing residential communities across the twin-island nation.

A regional court has granted bail of $400,000 to one of three defendants facing multiple serious charges connected to the alleged abuse of a domestic worker. The case, which includes disturbing allegations of prolonged assault and death threats against the victim, has drawn close attention to systemic protections for vulnerable domestic employees.

Twenty-two-year-old labourer Rohit Sitahal appeared for a virtual hearing before Master Kateisha Ambrose-Persadsingh at South A Court on the reported date. Sitahal faces five total charges: one count of throwing a noxious substance, two counts of intentionally inflicting bodily harm, and two additional unlisted offences. He is jointly charged with Fareeda Balgobin, a local businesswoman, and her son Joshua Benny, who did not appear for this week’s hearing.

Balgobin and Benny were taken into custody on April 11 and have since been held at the Eastern Correctional Rehabilitation Centre under preventive detention orders signed by Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander on April 20. The detention order against Balgobin links her to alleged activity with an organized Informed Crime Group (ICG) operating in the Penal region, where the alleged abuse took place. Prosecutors have submitted requests for writs of habeas corpus to secure the pair’s attendance at future court proceedings. Both are represented by defense attorneys Keron Ramkhalwhan and Shalini Sankar, while Sitahal appeared without legal representation this week.

During the hearing, police prosecutor Sgt Salazar urged the court to set bail at a level that reflected the severity of the alleged crimes, noting that the charge of throwing a noxious substance carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment if convicted. Despite this, Master Ambrose-Persadsingh approved bail for Sitahal at the requested $400,000, with strict non-contact and reporting conditions. The terms bar Sitahal from any direct or indirect communication with the alleged victim, require him to maintain a 50-foot distance from her at all times, order him to check in at the Rio Claro Police Station twice weekly, and restrict him to residing at the address he provided to the court.

The alleged victim, 42-year-old Sabita Basdeo, has told investigators she endured months of abuse between September 2025 and April 2026 at a private residence in Penal. According to police accounts, Basdeo claims she was repeatedly beaten, burned with harmful substances, and threatened with death if she tried to escape captivity. The case has been adjourned until June 10, when all three defendants are expected to appear before the court to proceed with the legal process.

A quiet residential compound in Longdenville, Chaguanas, has been shattered by violence that left two siblings dead on Thursday evening, with the victim’s family insisting 56-year-old Margarita Clarke was an innocent casualty of a targeted attack on her 53-year-old brother, Brian Clarke. The shooting, which unfolded around 8 p.m. at the family’s home on Longdenville Old Road, has sent shockwaves through the close-knit community, where violent crime of this nature is extremely rare.

Six siblings and their immediate families share the multi-apartment compound, with Margarita residing in a ground-floor front apartment alongside her two adult children, aged 20 and 30, and Brian occupying a top-floor front apartment. Speaking publicly to reporters from the *Express* on Friday, the siblings’ 75-year-old elder brother Kenneth Clarke shared the sequence of events that led to the deadly shooting, detailing that Margarita had been socializing with two friends at her home when the masked gunman stormed the property.

“As Margarita was heading inside to grab something for one of her guests, the gunman rushed in and opened fire,” Kenneth recounted. “Even after she raised her hand to surrender, he shot her in the chest before continuing straight upstairs to where my brother was. That was his target all along.” Brian was shot six times in the head, confirming the family’s belief that the attack was premeditated. Kenneth, who was away from the compound when the shooting began, arrived just minutes after hearing the gunfire.

Surveillance footage shared to social media shortly after the incident offers a clear timeline of the attack: a silver Nissan Note pulls up outside the family home just before 8 p.m., and a masked gunman exits the vehicle’s backseat. One initial shot rings out, followed by a woman’s scream, before six more shots are fired. The gunman then flees the property back to the waiting car, which speeds away from the scene immediately. Kenneth noted that the gunman moved directly to Brian’s apartment without hesitation, indicating he had inside information on the layout of the compound and Brian’s location.

Unconfirmed public reports have linked Brian to “bad company,” and his brother Allistair Clarke, who also lives on the compound, confirmed Brian struggled with a gambling addiction and owed money to unknown parties. Still, the family maintains that no debt justifies the brazen attack that claimed an innocent woman’s life. “We are devout Catholic people. Margarita was a good woman, she was never involved in anything like this, this was purely collateral damage,” Allistair said. “Brian was a good guy too, he would have paid what he owed. There was no reason to come here and do this. We need justice for both of them.”

Kenneth echoed that grief and anger, saying the whole community has been upended by the killing. “This never happens on this road. The entire street was blocked off with onlookers after the shooting, because everyone was shocked that something like this could happen here,” he said. “We have lost two family members, now we have to bury two of them. People were calling me all night Thursday saying how unfair it was that an innocent woman was killed. It is double the pain, and I couldn’t even sleep last night.”

Brian, who went by the nickname “Regis,” worked as a truck driver for a local hardware store in Cunupia, and his brother described him as a popular man who got along with nearly everyone he met. “He had all kinds of friends, and I can’t speak to what he got mixed up in – people don’t tell their brothers everything,” Kenneth said. “But the gunman knew exactly where to go, so someone must have tipped him off.”

The shooting has also renewed criticism of Trinidad and Tobago’s ongoing state of emergency, implemented to curb rising violent crime. Kenneth called the emergency measure “not working,” noting that the attack happened just a short distance from a local police post, with police patrol cars passing the compound regularly before the shooting. He issued a direct appeal to Minister of Homeland Security Roger Alexander to take stronger action to protect law-abiding residents.

“Right now, none of us feel safe. Innocent people are getting killed just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Kenneth said. “We need the government to step up and protect us.”