The caterer who attempted to bring wild meat into the Maximum Security Prison (MSP) Futsal final in July 2018 was the same caterer responsible for bringing in food to the Port-of-Spain Prison days before the 2015 jailbreak.
Prisons source say they believe the weapons which were used in that jailbreak were smuggled in wwith the food.
Following an exclusive interview by Guardian Media with outgoing Commissioner of Prisons Gerald Wilson, officers told the Sunday Guardian that the said caterer provided food for a high-profile prisoner who had once been housed at the Port-of-Spain jail.
During the daring jailbreak on July 24, 2015, three prisoners awaiting trial on murder and other violent offences escaped.
The men armed with hand grenades and firearms shot their way to freedom after bursting through the prison’s door on Frederick Street in Port-of-Spain.
One of the men identified as Allan “Scanny” Martin was killed by police officers during a gun battle while hiding in a guard booth at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital.
Martin was one of the men charged with the murder of businesswoman Vindra Naipaul Coolman.
During the daring escape police constable, Sherman Maynard was shot and killed by Martin outside the prison.
The two other prisoners Christopher “Monster” Selby, 30, and Hassan Atwell,41, who escaped through the hospital compound were able to evade police.
But one day later Atwell was found dead in a building at Laventille with multiple gunshot wounds.
Atwell had been awaiting extradition to the United States for the 2005 murder of US citizen Videsh Mohan. A few days later Selby surrendered to police with his attorney.
Commissioner of Prisons Gerald Wilson, who had been informed about the prisons officers findings as it relates to the smuggling of weapons into the prison with food in 2015, said during the sit-down interview last month: “We are still awaiting the conclusion of the police investigation, so if the officers know in 2015 because I too am anxious to find out how the weapons came in.
“If these officers who told you that, know how they came in, whatever it is...I would like to chat with them and tell the police, and the police can interview them so they will tell the police that they know so based on that information you have given me, to me...now it interesting and I know you may not want to reveal your source, but if you can convince them to speak to somebody anonymously, I would be happy to know how these things came into the jail in 2015,” said Wilson.
Senior prison sources told Sunday Guardian that the caterer in question is connected to a high profile inmate now at the MSP.
They believe the refusal of Superintendent Wayne Jackson to allow wild meat into the MSP on the day of the Futsal final led to Jackson’s death in October 2018.
Jackson was accosted by two gunmen outside his Malabar home and shot multiple times.
Wilson during the interview with Guardian Media last month said it could have been a combination of more than one thing.
“Whether Mr Jackson’s death was due to the denial of food I do not know, but prior to that incident with the Futsal and the finals, there was an issue with Mr Jackson and something else he decided he did not want to entertain and it is suggested that may have been the reason and not so much the final of Futsal.”
Wilson went on to explain that Jackson had refused specific food being allowed to enter the prison during Eid celebrations prior to the Futsal final.
One of the men who were responsible for killing Jackson, well-placed intelligence sources confirmed to the Sunday Guardian, was Marcus Marshall, who was incarcerated for some time and then released.
Marshall was found shot dead along the Old Valencia Road on November 19, dressed in Muslim garb. He was shot multiple times in the head and back.
He was found with both his hands clasped tightly to a bag containing thousands of dollars.
They believe that he was silenced because he knew too much in relation to particular crimes connected to a high profile inmate.
Top-ranking intelligence sources told Guardian Media that Marshall was one of the two suspects in the shooting of Jackson.
Documents seen by Guardian Media revealed that Marshall had been closely connected to a high profile inmate in the MSP.
They say since Marshall was released from jail, records indicated that he had visited the high-risk inmate several times.
The report further revealed that “it seemed that he was eager to do (name called) bidding and emerged as a man of business or an enforcer for (name called) gang.”
They say Marshall visited the high profile inmate in February and March in 2018 and identified himself as a friend. Marshall gave his address then as #5 Boxhill Trace, Pelican Extension Morvant.
Prisons Commissioner Wilson said they were still awaiting the outcome of the police investigation into Jackson’s murder.
“We suffer from closure most of the time when officers die we keep asking questions. Officers remain with anxiety and disappointment and we do not ever get any closure. We are still guessing what caused it and who would have done it. It is not a nice feeling,” said Wilson.
