It was busy weekend for officers of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service as the continued drive to remove illegal firearms from the streets across the country this weekend yielded the recovery of seven guns and the arrest of several persons, including a murder suspect.
The TTPS said special attention was paid to crime hot spots, drug blocks, priority offenders and wanted persons during a Northern Divisional Crime eradication exercise from Friday to Sunday. Several search warrants were executed and seven persons were arrested for various offences such as gang-related offences, robbery enquiries, shooting and wounding enquiries, resisting arrest and malicious damage.
The efforts to retrieve guns also extended to Tobago, where a firearm, a bag containing a quantity of nine-millimetre ammunition and a spent shell were recovered.
The TTPS’s media statement reads in full:
Officers of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service continued their drive to remove illegal firearms from the streets across the country this weekend, which yielded the recovery of seven guns and the arrest of several persons, including a murder suspect.
Two firearms were seized, after police came under fire while responding to a report of a stolen vehicle around 2:30 am yesterday. Officers of the Western Division observed a white Kia van, proceeding at a high rate of speed along the Eastern Main Road. Several attempts were made to intercept the vehicle. The vehicle came to a stop and one of the occupants shot at the officers. In keeping with the Use of Force Policy, the officers then discharged their TTPS-issued firearms in the direction of the suspects. The two men were then observed to be nursing injuries and were conveyed to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex to seek medical attention, however, they later succumbed to their injuries.
Police were again called into action, when around 7:15 pm on Sunday 16th January, 2022, officers on patrol, responded to a report of loud explosions in Arouca. Upon arrival, they discovered a man of 15 -16 Bon Air North, Windy Hill, Arouca lying on the ground with apparent gunshot wounds about his body but showing signs of life. He was then taken to the Arima Health Facility where he was pronounced dead at 7:49 pm. In keeping with the new operational structure for the Northern Division, a quick response from the North Central Operation Centre led to the interception of a vehicle. One suspect was arrested in connection with the murder, while police are actively engaged in searching for the other suspects involved.
The murder victim was later identified as 24-year-old, Akeem Prudhumme.
Meanwhile, three persons were arrested and two firearms were seized in separate incidents in the Central Division yesterday. In one incident, officers received information which led them to search a Nissan AD Wagon which was in a carpark in Cunupia. The search resulted in one black Beretta PX4 Storm pistol, loaded with one magazine containing ten rounds of nine-millimetre ammunition being seized and two men arrested. In the other incident, members of the Central Division Task Force Area North acted on information and proceeded to the Felicity and Enterprise districts, where a 22- year-old man was arrested for possession of a Glock 19 pistol, one magazine and eight rounds of nine-millimetre Luger ammunition.
The efforts to retrieve guns also extended to Tobago, where a firearm, a bag containing a quantity of nine-millimetre ammunition and a spent shell were recovered around 6:05 pm on Friday 14th January, 2022 by officers of the Moriah Police Station.
A black Mac10 sub machine gun fitted with a silencer and an extended magazine containing eight rounds of nine-millimetre ammunition were also recovered in a bushy area off a track on Manahambre Road, Princes Town. Additionally, while acting on information received, Mayaro Police proceeded to an abandoned lot along Naparima Mayaro Road in the vicinity of Solomon Street, where they recovered a revolver in a black plastic bag. Investigations are continuing into these matters.
Special attention was paid to crime hot spots, drug blocks, priority offenders and wanted persons during a Northern Divisional Crime eradication exercise from Friday 14th to Sunday 16th January, 2022. Several search warrants were executed and seven persons were arrested for various offences such as gang-related offences, robbery enquiries, shooting and wounding enquiries, resisting arrest and malicious damage.
The Acting Commissioner of Police, Mc Donald Jacob would like to thank the members of the public who have cooperated with the police in their fight against crime and commended all officers who continue to go over and beyond the call of duty in their efforts to keep Trinidad and Tobago safe.
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