Senior Political Reporter
National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds yesterday launched “blows” at former police commissioner Gary Griffith, who he claimed allowed the importation of more 7.62mm and 5.56mm ammunition than all the commissioners added together since Independence.
Hinds also said T&T is working on full compliance in terms of its ranking on the US Trafficking In Persons Watchlist and is expecting good things in 2024.
He spoke on these matters in his contribution to the 2024 Budget debate in Parliament.
Hinds said Cabinet recently approved the Regional Roadmap for addressing Caribbean priority actions on the illicit proliferation of firearms and ammunition in a sustainable way by 2030. The main goals are to reinforce regulatory frameworks governing firearms and ammunition, reduce the illicit flow and systematically decrease the risk of diversion from government and legal stock piles.
He explained that “diversion” means when weapons leave legal stockpiles and end up in criminals’ hands and referred to reports of T&T Defence Force (TTDF) and T&T Police Service (TTPS) bullets found at crime scenes.
“Diversion is the problem there. We’re finding a lot of 7.62mm ammunition on the scene. In one case recently, 94 shells were found, all of which, 5.56 and 7.62, the T&T military no longer use.
“But diversion is the issue. We’ve had significant importation of that through the hands of who I consider now to be a reckless former police commissioner. Because the record shows that he allowed for the importation of more 7.62 and 5.56 ammunition than all the commissioners of police added together since Independence,” Hinds said.
“And when we find them on crime scenes now, the question of diversion gets to me and diversion also includes where they’re sold or are allowed to be imported legally to firearms dealers and possibly, they end up in the wrong hands too. But these matters are under TTPS investigation, so I don’t want to say too much more about them.”
Hinds said the Joint Maritime Control Unit and Maritime Interdiction Unit was coordinated by the National Operations Fusion Centre (NOFC) in conjunction with the Transnational Organised Crime Unit TOCU).
“Yes, this is the same NOFC and the same TOCU that the Opposition Leader misleadingly questioned in her feeble, weak-kneed address,” he said.
“Also, contrary to what the Opposition Leader might think, we must engage the crime fight on land, sea and air,” Hinds added, citing the September 22 seizure of vessels with “dirty cargo” that netted 10.5 tonnes of cocaine and 5,744 pounds of marijuana.
Hinds called for the Opposition to “gang up” with Government in a civilised way to fight criminals. He said some people said the solution is more guns and ammunition following the policy adopted by the last CoP, but Government is focused on a restrictive policy where guns are granted to people who demonstrate they need them.
“Some people feel the solution is ‘Stand your ground, shoot back, knock it and ‘matic’. If law enforcement takes that bad advice, you know what chaos we’ll have? So I’d reject that,” he said.
“If we strengthen and professionalise the TTPS, tool them with intelligence and come together and pass the right laws to support law enforcement, we could fight that without the madness of ‘matic and shoot up and clip it and all kinds of foolishness!”
However, he said he didn’t want to say too much more about those matters, as they were still under intense police investigations.
He said the ministry is working to improve T&T’s Tier 2 watchlist rank in the US State Department’s Trafficking in Person’s report.
Better Trafficking in Persons ranking in 2024
The National Security Ministry is working assiduously to improve T&T’s Tier 2 watchlist ranking in the US State Department’s Trafficking in Person’s (TIP) report and is expecting “very very good things in 2024”, Hinds added.
He said the National Task Force against human trafficking and irregular migration was re-established in August.
“Also, thanks to the work of the Attorney General’s Ministry and National Security support, talks with the Judiciary have led to a commitment to the prioritization of TIP cases. One case is currently underway. The Ministry is optimistic that should the evidence support the judicial process, there will be convictions in 2024 or before. More cases are in the offing,” he added.
Hinds said the Ministry negotiated with the US for funding of a strategic TIP advisor working closely with the Ministry on human trafficking issues, particularly relating to the “expectations of our assessors in Washington.”
A home for female child victims of trafficking was opened in December 2022 and there is a new force of TTPS, customs and immigration officers on the issue.
“It’s expected this will lead to significant increase in investigations, operations, prosecutions and convictions,” he said.
“A programme is underway to provide education for some migrant children and some are also receiving this after collaboration with the Archbishop. I want to encourage the Education Minister that we continue to do this,” Hinds added.