标签： Trinidad and Tobago

A grieving Trinidadian father, Christopher Samaroo, whose son Joshua was killed in a police-involved shooting earlier this year, has been taken into custody under national emergency regulations after voluntarily contacting police to clear up misrepresented comments he made in a public radio interview.

Joshua Samaroo died on January 20 following a confrontation with law enforcement officers in St Augustine. Following his death, Joshua’s common-law wife Kaia Sealy has been hit with multiple criminal charges, including manslaughter, three counts of shooting with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and additional related offenses. On Father’s Day, Christopher Samaroo joined an i95.5FM radio program to talk about his months-long experience of grief after losing his son. The discussion also included Ronald “Crab” Cabrera, who was still mourning the murder of his 12-year-old daughter Mercedez Layne.

During the emotional interview, Samaroo opened up about his frustration with the circumstances of his son’s shooting and shared that he had little confidence that the ongoing legal process would deliver a fair outcome. Some of his critical remarks directed at law enforcement were clipped and shared widely across social media, cutting out key surrounding context from the full conversation. The radio program’s host intervened shortly after Samaroo made the comments in question, and only the truncated segment was circulated online.

Sensing growing concern over the misrepresented clips, Samaroo chose to voluntarily meet with police to clarify what he actually said, accompanied by his defense attorney Aaron Lewis. According to Lewis, the pair first arrived at Port of Spain’s Central Police Station around 5:30 p.m. on the day of the arrest, where Samaroo spent 40 minutes answering officers’ questions about the circulating statements. Lewis said Central Police Station officers told the pair they had no reports filed against Samaroo connected to the comments and no existing investigation into his remarks.

After leaving Central Police Station, Samaroo and Lewis received word from family members that a specialized police unit had visited the family’s Maraval home to look for Samaroo. The pair then traveled to Maraval Police Station to follow up, but officers there claimed to have no information about any warrant for Samaroo or any visit to his residence. They then moved on to St Clair Police Station, where officers from the Criminal Investigations Department approached Samaroo and informed him he was officially the target of an investigation.

Samaroo was formally cautioned and detained under Regulation 11 of the country’s Emergency Powers Regulations, the legal provision outlined in Legal Notice No 40. This regulation bans any action intended to sway public opinion in a way that could harm public safety, as well as any possession of materials or actions that support such an effort.

Lewis decried the arrest as a deeply unfair and unfortunate outcome, emphasizing that his client’s full remarks had been deliberately twisted and stripped of context online. “His words were twisted in the manner in which they were presented. He made a report concerning what he actually said, and what was circulated was cut short and does not reflect the entirety of his statement,” Lewis told local outlet the Express just minutes after Samaroo was taken into custody.

The attorney added that the arrest has worsened the severe emotional distress Samaroo has already endured since his son’s death. “To be cautioned and arrested for something like that, taking into consideration what he is going through with the loss of his son, is traumatic,” Lewis said. He noted that while Samaroo had braced for the possibility of police action, the actual experience of being taken into custody was far more overwhelming, particularly amid the ongoing state of emergency that grants authorities expanded power. “It is a serious matter,” Lewis added.

As of the night of the arrest, law enforcement officials had not released any public details about the specific allegations against Samaroo or the full scope of the investigation. Before he was detained, Samaroo himself had pushed back against the misrepresented clips, confirming that the online version cut off key portions of his full remarks. “That is not totally what I said. They caught me halfway through. The whole thing was missing parts,” he said, adding that the circulating snippets failed to capture the full context of his comments about his son’s death and his grief.

In a formal presentation delivered to the Assembly Chamber in Scarborough on Tuesday, Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Finance Secretary Petal-Ann Roberts unveiled the body’s requested $4.12 billion expenditure budget for the 2027 fiscal year, which runs from October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2027. Framed under the guiding theme “Results Based Governance, A Pathway to Prosperity”, the budget proposal breaks down total requested spending into two core buckets: $3.03 billion allocated to ongoing recurrent operations, and $1.09 billion earmarked for targeted development programming, including a $43.35 million line item for the Community-Based Environmental Protection and Enhancement Programme (CEPEP).

Roberts noted that the total request is calculated as a 6.6% share of Trinidad and Tobago’s projected $62.16 billion national budget for the period — a proportional allocation equal to just $6.60 of every $100 in national planned spending, matching the THA’s share in the current 2026 fiscal cycle. A line-by-line breakdown of the recurrent expenditure budget reveals that the Division of Health and Wellness has secured the largest single allocation, requesting $1.03 billion to support public health services across the island. Other major allocations include $519.60 million for the Division of Education, Skills and Innovation, $343.99 million for the Division of Public Infrastructure and Transportation, $193.28 million for the Division of Tourism, Antiquities and Creative Industries, and $181.94 million for the Office of the Chief Secretary, with all recurrent expenditure line items summing exactly to the $3.03 billion total.

Breaking down the components of recurrent spending, Roberts reported that $805.52 million is allocated to personnel costs, $935.57 million covers goods and services, $67.95 million supports minor equipment purchases, and $1.22 billion goes toward current transfers and subsidies for public services.

In a key policy shift, the budget restructures two long-running public employment and community development programs. The existing Unemployment Relief Programme (URP) will be rebranded and relocated as a new initiative under the Division of Public Infrastructure and Transportation, renamed the Programme for Infrastructure Upgrade in Urban and Rural Communities (IUURC), with an allocated $91.9 million in 2027 funding. Meanwhile, CEPEP has been realigned to the Division of Food Security, where its workforce will be leveraged to support growth and transformation of the island’s food production sector, retaining its $43.35 million approved budget.

Beyond spending allocations, Roberts used the budget presentation to call attention to a long-standing fiscal dispute between the THA and the central national government. She pointed out that the THA’s officially recorded total annual tax revenue of $220.5 million, collected via existing national revenue and tax administration systems, significantly undercounts the actual tax revenue generated by economic activity within Tobago. A large share of revenue generated locally in Tobago is currently collected by tax authorities based in Trinidad, a practice that Roberts says violates Section 49 of the THA Act 40 of 1996, the legislation governing the autonomous body’s authority.

Roberts emphasized that the only permanent solution to this decades-long fiscal inequity is the full completion of the Tobago internal self-government project, which would strengthen the THA’s legislative and enforcement authority to manage its own revenue streams in line with existing legal mandates.

During a phone interview with local outlet the Express while visiting the United States, Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has outlined a sweeping expansion of bilateral security cooperation with Washington, aimed at tightening border control, curbing drug trafficking, and dismantling organized crime across the twin-island nation.

Persad-Bissessar, who is in the U.S. to attend the funeral of her brother-in-law Michael L Ahamad and will return to Trinidad and Tobago tomorrow, with Works and Infrastructure Minister Jearlean John serving as acting Prime Minister in her absence, emphasized that the current government has reversed the security failures of the previous People’s National Movement (PNM) administration. She claimed that under her leadership, national borders are now more tightly controlled, additional Coast Guard vessels patrol territorial waters daily, and the national coastal radar system is fully operational – a stark contrast to conditions under the former government, which she accuses of having left borders porous for criminal networks.

The Prime Minister confirmed that in the coming months, Trinidad and Tobago will receive additional maritime patrol vessels from the United States to boost coastal security. Beyond equipment support, U.S. military and intelligence agencies are ramping up their on-the-ground presence to support local anti-crime operations. Currently, advance elements of U.S. Navy SEAL teams are already in the country coordinating logistics for a larger upcoming deployment. As the U.S. military’s elite special operations force, named for their capability to operate across sea, air and land domains, these SEAL personnel will provide specialized training and operational support to the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard and Defence Force, focusing on border protection, drug interdiction, and internal security operations.

While official data received regularly by the National Security Council, which Persad-Bissessar chairs, shows a measurable drop in serious violent crime across the country, and the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) has successfully disrupted multiple gang operations, the Prime Minister acknowledged that persistent security challenges remain. Drug shipments originating in South America continue to flow into the country through unpatrolled coastal areas of southern, southwestern, and central Trinidad. The coastline stretching from Caroni to Marabella, particularly its dense mangrove regions and informal squatter settlements, remains a high-risk smuggling corridor. Persad-Bissessar noted that these squatter communities are deeply infiltrated by criminal gangs, creating safe havens for illicit activity. Beyond transnational drug trafficking, the nation is also grappling with rising petty crime committed by non-gang-affiliated ordinary citizens, alongside ongoing issues of financial fraud and domestic violence. She explained that decades of unpunished lawbreaking have eroded social norms, leading some normally law-abiding residents to commit minor offenses, creating a gradual slide toward broader lawlessness.

In a surprising endorsement, Persad-Bissessar awarded Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro an “A” grade for his performance over his first year leading the TTPS, noting his progress in targeting entrenched criminal groups while acknowledging that fully dismantling long-established community gangs will require years of sustained effort.

On countering transnational financial crime, Persad-Bissessar highlighted critical intelligence support from U.S. agencies, which have identified individuals, business owners, and banking employees linked to cartel drug trafficking and money laundering operations who have moved billions of U.S. dollars out of the country illicitly for years. U.S. authorities have already begun punitive action against these networks, restricting their access to U.S. territory and the American financial system. The U.S. is also supporting upgrades to both physical and digital security infrastructure at Trinidad and Tobago’s major airports and seaports to strengthen border screening.

Persad-Bissessar criticized the former PNM administration for rejecting the full package of U.S. security assistance that was already available to them, accusing the previous government of intentionally leaving borders and ports open to allow traffickers to flood the country with illegal narcotics and weapons.

Looking ahead, the government plans to expand its holistic anti-crime strategy with new legislative measures and increased human resources. To crack down on white-collar crime and the financial networks backing drug trafficking and gang activity, the government is actively recruiting new staff for the understaffed Inland Revenue division, which previously operated at only 25% of its authorized workforce. The division is also receiving upgrades to its tax administration technology, boosting the state’s ability to monitor and investigate illicit financial activity.

Speaking at a high-level private sector dialogue hosted alongside the 56th Organisation of American States General Assembly in Panama on Sunday, Trinidad and Tobago Government Minister Nicholas Morris has issued a urgent call for systemic reforms to how Caribbean nations access development financing, warning the region’s most pressing challenges cannot be resolved by individual nations alone and demand coordinated regional collaboration backed by consistent, reliable funding.

Against a backdrop of rising global geopolitical and economic fragmentation, Morris, who serves in the Office of the Prime Minister, emphasized that multilateral cooperation remains the most effective pathway for small island states to advance their long-term development objectives. His remarks were delivered during a dedicated strategic session focused on multilateralism as a collective response to global crises, and the strategic role of regional bodies in turning discussion into tangible action for the Greater Caribbean.

Morris outlined that the ongoing dialogue reinforced just how critical multilateral institutions and collective action are, particularly as Caribbean countries navigate mounting economic and social strain. He stressed that policy conversations can no longer stop at reflection — tangible, actionable progress is needed immediately, especially when it comes to development resourcing.

The minister painted a clear picture of overlapping, interconnected challenges facing the Caribbean region: extreme climate vulnerability, persistent food and energy insecurity, rapidly rising sovereign debt levels, and growing threats from transnational organized crime. He also drew attention to the ongoing risk of de-risking by large international financial institutions, a practice that cuts off smaller Caribbean economies from critical global banking and financial services, further stifling growth.

According to Morris, the combination of these overlapping challenges has rendered traditional development financing frameworks obsolete, leaving outdated mechanisms unable to meet the region’s current needs. “The central challenge is not only the availability of financing, but its accessibility, predictability, and alignment with regional priorities,” he explained.

He added that Caribbean nations already operate with severely constrained fiscal space, leaving them disproportionately exposed to external economic shocks and destructive natural disasters that can erase years of development progress in days. As a result, entirely new, innovative approaches to resourcing are required to build regional resilience and advance inclusive sustainable development across the Caribbean.

Morris called for far greater mobilization of blended and innovative financing instruments to tackle the region’s development gaps. He argued that deeper, more effective partnerships with global development finance institutions are essential, alongside expanded access to concessional financing for the region’s most vulnerable economies. The minister stressed that development financing frameworks must be adapted to reflect the unique realities small island developing states face, noting that many Caribbean nations are classified as middle-income countries despite facing extreme climate and economic vulnerabilities that outpace those of many lower-income nations.

His remarks echo longstanding grievances from Caribbean governments, who have repeatedly argued that traditional eligibility criteria for concessional funding lock nations out of critical support even as their development challenges grow more severe.

Morris also turned attention to the need for institutional evolution within the Association of Caribbean States (ACS), arguing the organization must transition from its current role as a primarily consultative forum to a functional mechanism that can coordinate tangible cross-border action.

“It is precisely in this context that the ACS must be positioned not merely as a consultative body but as a genuine instrument of coordinated regional action,” he said. Morris argued the ACS is uniquely positioned to take a leading role in coordinating and attracting financing for high-impact regional projects, identifying priority areas including cross-border infrastructure development, climate adaptation initiatives, digital transformation programs, and expanded investment in the blue economy. He suggested the organization could serve as a practical convening platform that brings together national governments, multilateral development institutions, and international investors around shared, actionable regional development objectives.

The minister also highlighted the critical importance of deepening strategic relationships with non-traditional international partners that can bring new investment capital and innovative development financing models to the region. He welcomed the participation of senior delegates from the United Arab Emirates, the Gulf Cooperation Council, and the OECD Development Centre at the dialogue, noting their presence signals growing interest in strategic partnerships beyond the region’s traditional development collaborators. Morris noted that these new partnerships can unlock unprecedented financing and investment opportunities across the Greater Caribbean, pointing to Trinidad and Tobago’s existing bilateral engagement with the United Arab Emirates as a working example of the benefits these relationships can deliver.

While underscoring the foundational value of regional cooperation and strategic planning, Morris emphasized that accessible, adequate financing remains the make-or-break factor for delivering on regional development goals. “Without adequate and accessible financing, even the most well-designed regional strategies risk remaining aspirational,” he warned.

Closing his remarks, Morris expressed Trinidad and Tobago’s gratitude for the longstanding support the country and region have received from international development partners, and reaffirmed the country’s commitment to expanding and deepening these strategic relationships. He said the Trinidad and Tobago government remains focused on strengthening and diversifying regional and global partnerships as part of broader efforts to accelerate inclusive, sustainable development across the entire Greater Caribbean.

A controversial annual report from the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) has sent ripples through Trinidad and Tobago’s law enforcement community, revealing that police were involved in 60 fatal shootings between October 1, 2024, and September 30, 2025 — the highest one-year death toll from police encounters in over a decade. The data, included in the PCA’s 15th annual report, was recently presented to Parliament, and it shows that independent oversight body launched full investigations into every one of these fatal incidents.

Trinidad and Tobago’s acting Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro has defended the recent arrest and charging of well-known local social activist Alyssa Phillip and her mother Camille Caresquero, after the pair joined the country’s annual permitted Labour Day procession in Fyzabad on Friday without formal authorisation for their separate group.

Both women now face three criminal offenses each in connection with the incident. For Phillip, the charges include leading an unauthorised public procession, refusing an official order to disperse the group, disorderly conduct, and resisting arrest by law enforcement officers. Caresquero is charged with participating in an unlawful procession, obstructing a police officer in the course of their duties, and resisting arrest.

This arrest marks the second time the mother-daughter activist pair has been taken into custody for protest-related activity in recent weeks. They are currently out on bail pending trial for separate charges stemming from an unsanctioned demonstration outside the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in Port of Spain last month. Earlier in May, both women pleaded not guilty to all charges connected to that earlier protest before Magistrate Indira Rmarine Misir-Gosine.

Phillip and Caresquero have become prominent figures in Trinidad and Tobago’s local activist space, leading a series of public demonstrations and community vigils calling for greater accountability and transparency in the criminal justice system. Their protests stem from the controversial charging of Kaia Sealy with manslaughter and firearms-related offenses in connection with the January 20 police-involved shooting death of her husband Joshua Samaroo in St Augustine.

In a formal public statement released on Sunday, titled *TTPS Reaffirms the Rule of Law During Labour Day Procession*, the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) addressed widespread public discussion and debate surrounding the arrests, emphasizing that all enforcement action was carried out in full compliance with existing national legislation.

Commissioner Guevarro noted that the TTPS fully recognizes and upholds all constitutionally protected rights of citizens to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression. However, he stressed that these fundamental rights are not absolute and must be exercised within the boundaries set out by national law.

Guevarro added that law enforcement officers acted with full professionalism and clear adherence to procedural guidelines throughout the incident. “It is regrettable that enforcement became necessary, but the sanctity of the Labour Day procession should never be compromised by persons seeking to attach unrelated agendas to a permitted national event,” Guevarro said in the statement.

Under Trinidad and Tobago’s Summary Offences Act, all public marches require a formal permit issued directly by the Commissioner of Police, with written applications submitted within a statutorily defined timeframe. The commissioner has the authority to approve or deny permit applications based on assessments of public safety and public order risk. The national trade union movement, which organizes the annual Labour Day procession, completed all required legal steps and received full official approval for this year’s event, the TTPS confirmed.

According to the TTPS’s account of Friday’s incident, Phillip and a small group of her supporters, none of whom were affiliated with the organizing trade union movement, attempted to join the back of the authorised procession. Officers confirmed with event organizers that the activist group was not a formal part of the permitted event, then notified Phillip that her group’s participation would constitute a separate, unauthorised public march that required its own permit. Police also warned the group that their unauthorised presence risked jeopardizing the entire permitted Labour Day event.

Despite multiple formal warnings, the activist group moved forward and joined the procession as an unauthorised tail contingent. In line with Section 116 of the Summary Offences Act, a senior police officer of the required rank formally ordered Phillip, as the group’s leader, to direct the assembly to disperse. When Phillip refused to comply with the lawful order, officers moved in to arrest both her and Caresquero.

The TTPS further grounded its enforcement action in a recent High Court ruling delivered by Justice Ricky Rahim in the case *Walker v Attorney General (CV2023-00302)*. That ruling explicitly clarified the legal distinction between static public meetings and moving public marches, and reaffirmed that all public marches require prior written permission from the Commissioner of Police, regardless of whether they intend to attach themselves to an already permitted event.

“The judgment confirms that any group wishing to participate in a public march must have a permit, and that attaching an unauthorised procession to a lawful one is a breach of the act,” the TTPS statement noted. “The activist group in question did not give notice of a meeting, nor did they apply for or receive a permit for a march. Their actions, therefore, fell squarely within the statutory definition of an unlawful public march.”

Police officials added that enforcement action was necessary to prevent potential escalation of unrest, protect all attendees of the authorised Labour Day event, uphold the rule of law, and preserve the integrity of the national legislative framework governing public assemblies. “Allowing an unpermitted procession to merge with a lawful one would have undermined the event, created security risks, and violated the legal framework governing public marches,” the statement said.

The TTPS concluded by reaffirming its ongoing commitment to upholding all constitutional rights of Trinidad and Tobago citizens, enforcing the law equally and without bias, ensuring that national public events proceed safely and without disruption, and engaging with the public in a transparent and respectful manner. The service also issued a reminder to all activist and community groups seeking to hold public marches that completion of the formal permit process is required to avoid similar enforcement action in the future.