The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) issued a call on Wednesday for all police officers on vacation to report for duty as part of its ongoing efforts to enhance security during the state of emergency (SOE). This announcement came as the country continues to grapple with heightened security concerns.
Assistant Commissioner of Police, Richard Smith, confirmed during a news conference that the TTPS has ramped up operations since the SOE was declared on December 30 of the previous year. Smith also took the opportunity to commend the public for their cooperation, highlighting the importance of community support in ensuring the success of the state’s emergency measures. The call for additional officers underscores the TTPS’s commitment to maintaining public safety during this critical period.
“We have sent out the call as well to our officers, currently on vacation leave and they have been coming out…to do their civic duty as we fight against this surge in criminality facing our country.
“So I want to thank those officers who have come out thus far and for those who have not come out, messages will be sent to you, making an appeal to you all to come out …as early as today, tomorrow…
“As soon as you get this message, we want you to come out because we need your assistance, we need all hands on deck as we continue to fight against this surge,” Smith said.
Smith said that for those who do not come out, the TTPS has “its disciplinary process by which we would be able to proceed against them and if found wanting then we will have probably charges laid against them.”
But, he acknowledged that there are officers on leave for “various reasons” and for many months, but have heeded the call to report for duty.
Earlier, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Junior Benjamin, told reporters that the police have made a significant dent in criminal activities since the SOE.
“We have targeted 503 priority offenders, we have conducted 2,495 searches. A total of 360 persons have been arrested, 22 firearms thus far have been recovered and around 818 assorted rounds of ammunition have been recovered thus far.
“In terms of dangerous drugs seized, we have just under 84 kilograms of marijuana and 592 grams of cocaine,” he said, praising the cooperation of the public.
“Some of these successes could not have taken place without us working with the public and therefore we want to continue to ask the public to work with us as we seek to deal with the rime situation…in this state of emergency as we seek to bring to justice persons that are found committing offences,” Benjamin added.
The SOE was imposed following a shootout among rival gangs outside a police station in the capital, with Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley telling a news conference last Friday that the authorities had also received “information of retaliatory actions” that would “more than likely occur in the days to follow.”
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