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03:16Welcome to Beyond the Tape.
03:17I'm your host and welcome to Trinidad and Tobago and the viewers across the globe.
03:24It's day 22 of the state of emergency and we sit near a really busy weekend.
03:30You know, there were two double murders within that span on Saturday and this Sunday, a double
03:36in the Belmont area, and of course, the unfortunate as well deaths of two young men in the Matlot
03:44area yesterday afternoon.
03:47Certainly, those are the pictures of the two young men, Arno Isaac, 16, and his brother
03:55there, second, Akil, 26 years.
03:58If you really hear the story about these two young men, it's very sad that Express reporter
04:10Jassi Gonzal spoke with the mother earlier today, and I also spoke with her very briefly
04:14this afternoon.
04:16She spoke about the fact that because her young 16-year-old son did not want to join
04:23this particular gang operating in the Matlot area, she has seen hell, and by extension,
04:28the communities there over the last year.
04:33She said, the reason why I'm saying this is that my children never used to deal with them.
04:37They never used to talk to them or anything with that, and that is not the first time
04:42as gang members came to my house on two occasions and shoot up my house and tried to burn my
04:48house on April 27th and most recently in December.
04:55She said she made several reports to the police, and in essence, she said the system has failed
05:01us inside here and that these young men are doing what they want.
05:05The police have promised to come up and investigate the second such incident in December, and
05:12she says she's still waiting.
05:14Indicative of these gangs stretching across the east-west corridor and other parts of
05:19Trinidad and Tobago, and all she's asking is the authorities to come forward.
05:25They know who these perpetrators are and at least act in some measure to safeguard not
05:31just the area or the Matlut community, but other communities in and around that area
05:36where they've seen a prevalence of gangs operating and targeting young men in that area.
05:43So certainly some food for thought there.
05:47Of course, today we are also joined by Captain Valens Ramparad of the Hunter, Search and
05:52Rescue Team, and we want to welcome you, sir, and certainly we're going to be talking a
05:55little bit about the missing persons and accounted for last year as well into this year.
06:01Yeah, for missing persons, we have our statistics.
06:05They're ready for 2024.
06:07But a pleasant good evening to our viewers, and it's a pleasure to be here again.
06:11And Mark, it's rather sad to stand here and listen to you with respect to those Matlut murders.
06:19We know Belmont has been hot for the second part of 2024.
06:24There has been a proliferation of gang activity in the Belmont area, but it's startling to
06:29know that there is gang activity taking place in this remote community called Matlut.
06:36And reading what you just read, it breaks my heart for a mother to be mourning the death
06:43of her two sons.
06:44Yeah, it seems because, you know, further conversation with our media host today, she
06:51said that they were not involved in any gang activity.
06:54And apparently her younger son had warded off or defended one of his friends last December
07:01from a gang member. And I don't know if that would have enraged the individuals to come
07:05looking for revenge, but they have been trying to constantly recruit this man and this young
07:10boy. And we have spoken to people about that, parents even, if you're having an issue in
07:16the community, reach out to somebody in the law enforcement who can assist, you know,
07:21and even the Belmont double murder was also, you know, strange because these guys came
07:27all the way from Tumpuna Road and were shot in a vehicle.
07:30I don't know if they went there to get something or if they were lured there for some
07:33other reason.
07:35But they also, one was, I think, 54 and the other was quite young in their 20s, if memory
07:40serves me right.
07:41Yeah, but in the Matlut case, what you're alluding to, and based on what the mother
07:45said, you're looking at two young men trying to refuse to become part of a gang.
07:52And to me, that shows a different spotlight on the entire thing.
07:58These two young men, they did not want to get into gang activity and they suffered, they
08:03lost their lives because of that.
08:05And there's another dimension that needs to be explored.
08:09Yeah, certainly. And, you know, we can talk about that for the entire show, but we have
08:14other things, of course, we want to delve into, you know, the mission.
08:18Yeah, we had a busy weekend as well, because I think from a couple of weeks, about a week
08:24now, I've been highlighting the case of Marika Harry, a 17-year-old girl from
08:29Lougheed, recently, who has been missing since New Year's Day.
08:33I'm happy. An hour ago, the police would have posted the post on their Facebook
08:39page because we've brought everything to their attention.
08:42Now, Mark, we're convinced that Marika is not a runaway teen, right?
08:48We're absolutely convinced about that.
08:50We know who she went with.
08:53There's a particular gentleman, and I called his name already, Anson, we have a new name
08:58to add, Shane from Ramaytres and Pinal.
09:02We've passed all this information on to the police.
09:07And over the weekend, we went in search of further information and we were able to do
09:14some searches in the Pinal district to try to locate Marika Harry.
09:19And it meant visiting various houses in the area and interviewing the family members as
09:26well. And we collated all the information.
09:29As I said last week, we were able to get into her IG account.
09:34And we now have in our possession a voice note from Anson asking her to walk down that
09:41said step that you see both members walked up.
09:45He asked her to walk down those stairs and meet him on the roadway.
09:53And so if Anson's listening out there, please go to the Pinal police station.
09:59They're looking for you.
10:01We are about to get your correct name and your proper address.
10:05So we want you to go down to the Pinal police station and get information.
10:11But we had a really plea from her mother to anybody out there who has information on her
10:20to please come out and let us know.
10:23I think we have a new audio.
10:25Let's take a listen in.
10:26Marika Harry has been missing since 1st of January 2025.
10:34I haven't seen her.
10:36It is 18 days now.
10:40I don't have any information on her.
10:43I would like you all to contact us.
10:50I want my daughter home.
10:53So, Anson, like you all really want us to come down there and look for you?
10:59Yeah, we'll have to go.
11:00If you all have information.
11:01So we know the characters involved and we know that they did pick her up with her car.
11:06She contacted her mummy.
11:08And this is the thing about Marika.
11:10She always kept in contact with her mother.
11:13So it's not a runaway.
11:14She told the mother on WhatsApp that she was with Anson.
11:19And on the IG account that we cracked and we were able to pick up her conversation with
11:24Anson, he said to meet her there.
11:26She came home.
11:27She put on her sneakers.
11:29She walked down the stairs.
11:31She met with Anson and she and they left.
11:34And we know that they were in the D.B. area.
11:36And so we will be on this case continuously.
11:41There's another case that we're working on and we'll go to after this program.
11:46But we will work on Marika, Harry, and bring all resources to bear to make sure that we find her.
11:52Is it that she knew this Anson character?
11:54Yes, she knew.
11:55He visited one or two times.
11:56And that's the thing about this thing.
11:58If somebody comes to visit her to chat, the mother allows her.
12:01They stay by the house there.
12:03And she allows them to chat.
12:05So they have an excellent mother-daughter relationship.
12:07There's nothing strained there at all.
12:09And Marika had stopped school.
12:13Right?
12:14She dropped out of school.
12:15She dropped out of her school to look after her four other younger siblings.
12:19So that the mother could have gone to work to earn money to support the family.
12:24But she is by no means a bad person.
12:28And she is still a child.
12:31And we have to find her.
12:32We're determined to do what is necessary.
12:35We're working closely with the penal police on this matter.
12:38And we hope to find Marika soon.
12:41But we need Anson Shane from Ramaytres in Penal.
12:45Sorry, Debe.
12:47To visit the penal police station.
12:50And speak to the officers there.
12:52You can speak to Corporal Stacey Henry.
12:56Or Corporal Sukram.
12:58They are waiting on you all to visit.
13:00And mind you, Mark, very quickly.
13:03You remember KFC Rabri Dang and Debe?
13:05Yes.
13:06Shane was the person who was held for that.
13:08So we know everything about Shane.
13:10And we know almost everything about Anson.
13:12All right.
13:13So we are hopeful that whoever is listening.
13:15And has any information about the whereabouts of Marika.
13:18Please contact Nineris Police Station.
13:20Or get in contact with the Hunter's Search and Rescue Team.
13:24What's the number again?
13:25799-1453.
13:27All right.
13:28Great.
13:29All right.
13:30We're going to take a look now at our state of emergency update.
13:33For day 22.
13:35Collectively, of course, over the last 22 days.
13:40So there have been 1,201 operations.
13:44Target of 1,193 priority offenders.
13:49Searches conducted 7,051.
13:52Traffic operations 944.
13:55Total persons arrested thus far 929.
14:00Traffic offenses detected 3,059.
14:04Firearms recovered 43.
14:07Ammunition recovered 1,180 assorted ammunition.
14:11Dangerous drugs seized 131,965.15 grams of cannabis.
14:19And 725.09 grams of cocaine.
14:24So that's the latest numbers as of states up to day 22.
14:28Of the state of emergency.
14:30And the operations that the police are conducting.
14:33Or continue to conduct.
14:35All right.
14:36Let's take a look now at our headlines.
15:06So those were the headlines within the last 24 hours.
15:12Some major crime headlines there.
15:14And of course one of those very troubling crime stories occurred over the weekend.
15:21Where police were in pursuit of alleged car thieves.
15:26Who were actually heading.
15:28I think it was east along the.
15:30Sorry.
15:31The other way.
15:32West along the eastbound lane.
15:34And in so doing of course.
15:36The perpetrators would have stopped along the shoulder.
15:39And police gave chase.
15:41Now during that chase there was an exchange of gunfire.
15:45In the Bitham area.
15:47Seeing the police officers there on the shoulder.
15:50And inside of one of those homes.
15:54There was a lady by the name of Sherida Alley.
15:57In the kitchen area.
15:59And apparently a stray bullet.
16:01Yet to be determined by who exactly would have fired that fatal shot.
16:08She was shot in the head.
16:10The bullet going through the window.
16:13Of the kitchen.
16:15This is Sherida Alley.
16:17Losing her life.
16:18Most unfortunate.
16:20And of course you know.
16:22The matter is now being investigated by the police complaints authority.
16:27Preliminary investigations have to be conducted etc.
16:31And then to get a more holistic sense of what really transpired.
16:35Whether or not it was the fatal bullet that came from law enforcement.
16:40Or the alleged bandits.
16:42We have to wait and see.
16:44We don't want to be presumptuous of course.
16:46Yeah rather unfortunate.
16:48And I'm happy that the PCA got involved.
16:50I read an article.
16:53What the PCA is saying is that they hope the police have body cams on.
16:59And you know that's another issue.
17:01But the body cams will assist in such investigations.
17:07So the body cams are very important.
17:10But it's unfortunate how this incident unfolded.
17:13That we have a loss of innocent life.
17:16At the end of the day.
17:18That's exactly.
17:19I'm going to take you quickly to some video footage.
17:22There was a shooting incident over the weekend.
17:25Captured on CCTV footage.
17:29Or camera rather.
17:31So this was approximately at 1am.
17:35According to the time stamp.
17:37On the 19th.
17:39So that would have been sometime yesterday.
17:41Or in the early hours of Sunday morning rather.
17:44So yesterday morning.
17:47It seemed to be outside a bar.
17:52And reportedly there was some exchange of gunfire.
17:57Outside of the bar.
17:59There's a car there leaving.
18:01Of course.
18:03It's a rather tight spot.
18:05Yeah it is.
18:07Boxed in by two vehicles there.
18:17And we're seeing the cars trying to maneuver.
18:25There's a number of people at the top of the screen there.
18:29We're seeing a number of persons walking about.
18:32The car stops.
18:35Yeah.
18:37And then drives off.
18:42And I don't know if I'm a little later in the video.
18:45But there was some commotion apparently.
18:47Right.
18:49We see people moving around.
18:53Some other persons were at that bar crossing the street.
18:58So we're not sure if the gunfire came from the vehicle that just moved out of that tight spot.
19:05Yeah.
19:07We're wondering why the vehicle slowed there as well.
19:10But there was some kind of incident.
19:12Yeah where a shooting occurred.
19:14It's a fairly long video.
19:16It's about four minutes.
19:21They've speeded up a bit here to see what might have occurred there.
19:26A guy just technically things there in the video.
19:31People going to their vehicles in an attempt to move out of the area.
19:36I see a commotion.
19:38I think that is somebody's raising...
19:40You know.
19:42Yeah.
19:44They had an argument of some sort.
19:48And then there's a commotion with a number of people there.
19:51Oh, right.
19:59Seems to be some kind of a confrontation brewing here.
20:06So you see there's a confrontation brewing there outside.
20:14And they're blocking the pathway of some vehicles.
20:19This guy walks back to the van here.
20:37And the van returns.
20:40So some kind of altercation...
20:42Something that may have emanated from the bar itself here.
20:45Would have taken place outside that bar in the Arima district.
20:51Alright, we're going to take a short break and we'll be back.
20:53Stay with us.
20:55Alright, we're going to take a short break and we'll be back.
20:57Stay with us.
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25:12We were able to locate Ricky George
25:15with the assistance of members of the public, the relatives,
25:18and what happened was that Ricky George
25:21was the victim of a pedestrian-involved
25:24hit-and-run accident in the Kirup area,
25:27was the victim of a pedestrian-involved hit-and-run accident in the Kirup area,
25:30and he was taken to a hospital unconscious.
25:33He didn't have his ID on him,
25:36and no one knew who this person was
25:39someone came forward and identified that it was Ricky George.
25:44His relatives were informed,
25:46and so they were reunited with Ricky George this week.
25:50And this is outstanding since November.
25:54So just to let the public know that,
25:57keep talking to us,
25:58we will try to account for as many persons as that we can.
26:03We out there, we work all the time,
26:05and we are available 24-7 to assist families.
26:10And if we look at January,
26:13today is the 20th of the month of January.
26:15We have had 17 persons reported to us
26:19as missing for January 2024.
26:23Out of these 17 persons,
26:26we are unable to account for six persons.
26:29We dealt with the first case already,
26:32and that is Marika Harry from the Penal District,
26:36Lougheed-Thompson Penal,
26:38and we're working hard to get her.
26:40And we're asking members of the public
26:43to please assist us.
26:44We're working alongside the police
26:47and the relatives to find her.
26:49Kemiah Bishop, she remains,
26:53she's a repeated offender.
26:54She's well-known to us.
26:56Every time she has been found,
26:58I speak to Kemiah Bishop about, you know, her life.
27:03We know she's in the B-term area,
27:05and so the search goes on at 14 years old,
27:09and this is about the third time she has left home.
27:13As well as Destiny Matthews from Takaragawa,
27:17she's well-known to us as well.
27:19This is the second time with Destiny,
27:22and we're working with her mother to try to get her back.
27:27So if you have information about Destiny Matthews,
27:30she's from the Takaragawa District, age 16.
27:34She has been missing,
27:35and we need to find her as quickly as possible.
27:38Her mother, again, is distraught over the fact
27:42that Destiny is not showing up at home.
27:45And Keston Koto remains missing.
27:48Mark, this is the gentleman from the Arango,
27:51Eldorado District there where he parked his car.
27:55Yes.
27:56No, no, not the one with the vehicle.
27:57He went to his apartment, the vehicle was found there,
28:01and he was not in the apartment.
28:04No sign of him at all.
28:06So we're asking the public
28:08if you have information on Keston Koto.
28:10He's a very popular person,
28:12and therefore any information you have on Keston,
28:16please feel free to call 799-1453.
28:20Let us try and get him.
28:24Kiana Vidal,
28:27first came up on the radar recently,
28:29and we're trying to assist this family.
28:31We're trying to locate her.
28:32It's another Barataria case,
28:34and we've had no movement,
28:36and this one leads up to the time I came here.
28:40But if you have information,
28:42please pass it on to us, call us.
28:44Let us try and get Kiana home.
28:46And Mark, this one, this person here,
28:49Amir Mohammed, this came up yesterday.
28:52Right.
28:53Amir visited his girlfriend at Lover's Lane
28:57in Carrapo on Saturday,
29:00well, probably on Friday.
29:02Right.
29:03He left her home at 5 a.m. on Saturday morning to go home.
29:11He drives a copper-colored Almera.
29:15It's the car we see in the images, right?
29:18Yeah, and he has been missing.
29:21So we've been doing some work with the family on this case,
29:25and when we leave here, when I leave here,
29:28I'm going to the Frederick settlement
29:30to sit down with them
29:31and trying to go through some options with them.
29:34But already searches have started very quietly
29:38because it was a night search,
29:41so we have to continue to work with this family
29:44and the police to try to see if we could find Amir Hussein.
29:49So if members of the public have any information
29:52on anything that's transpired
29:55between 5 and 6 a.m. on Saturday morning,
29:58you know you're going for your double St. Helena,
30:01you know you're going for your double Spiaco,
30:03two routes he could have taken either from Carrapo
30:07using the St. Helena route to Frederick settlement
30:11or through the Piaco route to get to Frederick settlement.
30:16So if you could jog your memory
30:19and see if you meet this gentleman
30:21or the vehicle anywhere on those two routes,
30:24please call us and pass that information on to us.
30:28We already had a sighting we dealt with today,
30:30but it was the wrong vehicle.
30:32And so, Mark, those were the missing persons
30:35for January 2024, six unaccounted for.
30:40All right, so again, if you have any information,
30:42don't forget to call the Hunter Search and Rescue
30:44at 799-1453.
30:47We're going to take a short break and we'll be back.
30:49Stay with us.
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32:13It starts here with the Trinidad Express Newspapers.
32:19To enhance your reading experience,
32:21our back page will now carry the second biggest story
32:25of the day, leading to all of the content you want.
32:28Local and international news, sports, weather,
32:32lifestyle articles, puzzles, and more.
32:35So whether you like reading from the front or the back,
32:39our new design has you in mind.
32:42It starts here with the Trinidad Express Newspapers.
32:48Welcome back to Beyond the Tape, I'm your host, Mark Bassan,
33:00joined today by Captain Valens Ramaret
33:02from the Hunter's Search and Rescue Team.
33:05We have a call on the line, call her good evening.
33:08Hi, good evening, Mr. Bassan,
33:09and also good evening to the sentiment
33:13from the Hunter's Search and Rescue Team.
33:16I just am on the television viewing Beyond the Tape
33:18I am keeping abreast of the progress
33:23that the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service
33:26is making in terms of resulting crime
33:30in Trinidad and Tobago.
33:32And I was actually just listening
33:33to what the sentiment from the search
33:35and rescue team was saying.
33:38So the thoughts crossed my mind.
33:40I wanna see some of that scene.
33:42I wanna come in and see that it would
33:45seem to be very good and helpful.
33:47I know that they say proof does not satisfy
33:50when they come up with results,
33:51but in my opinion, I think in the rules that they perform
33:56should already be a part of the Trinidad
33:58and Tobago Police Service.
34:00So those details are not there with you,
34:02and all of them, but they should be a part of,
34:06should be a unit within the TTPS already.
34:09And I say that because in a society where
34:12you know different things with X, Y, and Z,
34:16I would like to believe that this is an organization
34:18verified and approved by the TTPS
34:21and the Ministry of National Security,
34:23but it is a different kind of confusion and oppression
34:27which we would call this like a giant organization
34:31or a rogue organization, but just in the aim of like,
34:36you know, minimalizing confusion in society,
34:39it should be part of, but with that said,
34:43you know, continue to do the show,
34:45and we try to help understand the work
34:49that the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service does.
34:52I know they say protect our school,
34:54but as I said, it's not the TTPS of prison.
34:58I'm confused on what they mean by protect our school.
35:01Do they mean protect our school,
35:02the other schools in the society,
35:05or do they mean protect our school,
35:08our agenda to get our students
35:11to accept our culture of mediocrity?
35:14You know, I'm really confused,
35:16but I continue to watch out.
35:19I hope that the TTPS is really able to resolve
35:22all very soon.
35:24Thanks, Trinidad.
35:27Yeah, thanks, Cole.
35:28Let me just explain to you the model we work.
35:31We are a group of volunteers.
35:32We hunters, basically.
35:34We have special skills to go and navigate vegetation,
35:38dense vegetation in Trinidad and Tobago,
35:40and all sorts of terrain.
35:42That's a special skill we carry.
35:44Now, we are recognized by Trinidad and Tobago Police Service,
35:48and we get their full cooperation when asked,
35:51and they know us well based on what we have done in the past.
35:55Now, the model we use is simply
35:58that we are a non-profit organization.
36:01We do not seek to become a part of any state organization
36:06at this point in time.
36:08We feel strongly about the fact that we have a skill
36:12that is resourceful and can help families
36:16get their loved ones,
36:17and therefore, we work with law enforcement
36:21in many of our cases,
36:23and we want to just continue to use these skills.
36:26You see, Cole, embracing a model
36:30of which you speak about could easily get our hands tied.
36:35We could easily be tied up like crabs,
36:38and we don't want to have to do that.
36:41I don't want to have to ask anybody permission
36:44to come and be on the team.
36:45I don't want to have to ask anybody permission
36:48to go there and ask a family.
36:50So, as much as we could carry on this organization
36:54with the little resources we have, we will do so.
36:58Maybe there are other types of models we could look at,
37:02but we don't want to become embraced
37:04with any state organization.
37:07Let me just say that the police,
37:11there's a workforce of about 8,000 or 9,000,
37:13and they can't be everywhere.
37:16I agree with you.
37:17What you all do helps the police in some manner,
37:20because it's time and resources that they might not have.
37:24We can't fool the police all the time,
37:25but you all also tend to bolster
37:29the resource area in an area where they need it.
37:33A senior officer said to us one time,
37:36he said, listen, if you all could focus on that area,
37:39we have more time to spend on other areas.
37:42Other areas, violent crime, this, that.
37:46And we agreed with him, and we said, yes.
37:48We have a little niche area.
37:49We will help the families to find their loved ones.
37:54All right, so I hope you answered your question, Kola.
37:57And I know that we were talking last year
38:01about a story where the police said there was 500
38:03and something odd missing persons, et cetera, et cetera.
38:06And you don't want to create any kind of confusion,
38:08but I know that you guys have been keeping
38:10your own statistics, and I know you would like
38:13to share that with the public.
38:14So, Nikola, you're listening.
38:16So we have the young people on the team
38:18who will make sure they're not always visible in the field,
38:22but they come out, and they help us with our statistics.
38:25They run our social media programs,
38:27and they give us, the elder ones,
38:29the time to go into the field.
38:31So we maintain our records.
38:33370 reports of missing persons for 2024.
38:42The police figure would be higher
38:44because sometimes somebody goes missing,
38:46and they are quickly found.
38:48We do not include that in our statistics,
38:51and they have to record every single report,
38:53whether it's a little boy lost in a mall
38:56for two hours and recovered.
38:59They have to record that.
39:00So that our figure for the year is 370 persons.
39:05It's close to like an average of one per day,
39:09or 31 per month.
39:11And what the statistics is showing
39:13is of the 370 that were reported,
39:18and we were able to account for 242 persons.
39:23However, I'm sorry, we were able to account really
39:27for 280 persons.
39:29242 were found alive,
39:32and we had, unfortunately, 38 found unalive.
39:37And just to go back to that cola-cola,
39:39this is where our team comes in,
39:41and the 38 bodies found.
39:43We've assisted, we've worked with families,
39:48and to find bodies is difficult.
39:50It's a very difficult task.
39:53And this is where our contribution is the greatest.
39:56Many of those persons would not have been able
39:59to be accounted for were it not for an organization like us.
40:03And we continue to go out there.
40:06Now, so the persons unaccounted for,
40:09for 2024, is 90,
40:12and we're still working to get that number done, Mark.
40:16All right?
40:18And if you're looking at the gender,
40:22the demographics, we've had 207 males
40:28for 2024, and 163 females
40:32for 2024 who went missing.
40:36And as we move along, looking at the statistics for 2024,
40:40prepared by Hunter's Switch and Rescue Team,
40:44the adults, 18 to 60,
40:47that accounted for 190 persons who went missing.
40:50The elderly, which is a demographic we pay
40:55a lot of attention to, 47 went missing.
40:59And in the minors, you had 133 persons
41:04being reported missing.
41:06And I know people focus on the minors,
41:08they are a large group there,
41:1036% of persons who go missing in Trinidad and Tobago.
41:17And the missing persons by district,
41:22and this is something we look at carefully,
41:25because the number one district
41:27is the Northeast District, 87%.
41:32And Mark, we tend to find a lot of missing persons
41:36coming from the Valencia District in 2024.
41:40And I don't know if that's a trend
41:41or if there's an increase in population.
41:44I heard about squatting and stuff in the area.
41:47Increased squatting, I saw a report from LSE,
41:49so I don't know if that is what accounts
41:51for the highest number of missing persons
41:55in that Northeast District.
41:57And in second year, you have Northwest,
42:00which is Portisby, Indigo Mountain,
42:02Barataria, Sawa, Area 81, went missing there in 2024.
42:08And in third place, we had Southwest,
42:11which is a pretty large area, Point 14,
42:14Cedras, Erin, Separia, all that is Southwest.
42:19And in fourth, you had the Central District,
42:23which accounts for 69 missing persons.
42:27And then you had Southeast, 41, or 11%.
42:33And then you have Tobago, a small island,
42:35but you still had 15 persons
42:38who went missing there in 2024.
42:43And then we have the breakdown by months.
42:47So when I come here and I give the monthly analysis,
42:52we tabulate it and we keep it for,
42:55so here's what it is for the,
43:00by each month, and I keep repeating that
43:04the February of this year,
43:06we had six missing persons unaccounted for,
43:10and we were able to reduce those numbers.
43:13So hopefully, we could still work
43:15on some of these missing person cases.
43:17As you can see, the minors account for quite a bit,
43:21as well as the adults with the elderly falling to it.
43:25But we have to continue to work
43:28and try and get these as many persons as possible.
43:33So Mark, it was a pleasure to release these figures
43:36for the first time on Beyond the Tape.
43:38I had promised to do so sometime in December,
43:42and we've worked hard over the last couple of days
43:45to get everything in order.
43:47I was asking them to wait a week,
43:48but they thought that today was the day.
43:52Certainly a very comprehensive breakdown there.
43:55We're gonna take a short break,
43:56and we'll be back with your calls.
43:57Stay with us.
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46:22Welcome back to Beyond the Tape.
46:23I'm your host, Mark Bassan,
46:25joined today by Captain Valens Ramarat
46:27from the Hunter's Search and Rescue Team.
46:30And I know you're accustomed looking at fights,
46:33and you know, shoes, and so on, boxing, and so on.
46:37But we actually saw one being played out
46:40by a young man who is a young man
46:42who is a young man who is a young man
46:44who is a young man who is a young man
46:46who is a young man who is a young man
46:48who is a young man who is a young man
46:49who is a young man who is a young man
46:50So one being played out in one of the nation's prisons
46:55sometime in the last couple of days.
46:58It looked to me like it was something of a staged fight,
47:02but I guess we could just take a quick look.
47:13So you're seeing two of them engaging in this battle.
47:17And, you know, there's some excuses, I think,
47:20in between in the video, or the clip, rather.
47:26But during that, you can hear the other prisoners
47:30egging on their counterparts.
47:35And there's a guy saying, you know,
47:37you need to tap out.
47:39So it seemed that this fight, it was like,
47:44you know, somebody had to surrender,
47:46tap out before.
47:47Before.
47:48You know, but it's obviously a very dangerous practice,
47:51whether or not it's a way of, you know,
47:54establishing a dominance in some way or the other.
47:58So you have beyond the teeth,
48:01and this is beyond the gallows.
48:02And they're getting their messages out.
48:07I don't know if it's something
48:09that the prison authorities were not aware of,
48:11you know, and there's prevalence of cell phones.
48:14It still exists in the nation's jails.
48:17And obviously, it was captured and sent viral
48:22across, you know, the internet, WhatsApp, and so on.
48:25So for everybody to see that that is something
48:29that I'm sure.
48:30Yeah, when I was looking at it, I thought about it.
48:34The use of cell phones in the prison,
48:36and I continue to make the recommendation
48:38to look at the power supply of the phones.
48:41And they should be able to make some inroads
48:44into that problem.
48:45Yeah, and another note, too,
48:47you know that, you know, the prison officers
48:49have been reporting threats to their lives
48:52after, you know, certain things would have happened
48:54over the last few weeks at the nation's prisons,
48:57especially at the MSP.
48:59And my understanding is that yesterday,
49:01or this morning, rather,
49:03the houses of two prison officers
49:07were shot up in East Trinidad.
49:10I got a message from one of the prison officers
49:13telling me they seem to have been in the Carapo area.
49:17The Carapo district, I saw that.
49:19Based on the information that I received.
49:21Short while before coming on to the show,
49:24and they talked about the fact that, you know,
49:27certain subliminal message was sent out
49:30within the prison about, you know, a threat.
49:33Prison officers and threats.
49:36Correct.
49:36They were dealing with one particular prisoner
49:40who they had focus on.
49:43Correct.
49:44And was being moved from one building to another
49:46in the maximum security prison.
49:49And this is another instance
49:54where prison officers,
49:57it could be that they're carrying out a threat.
49:59All right?
50:00But I did read it.
50:01Exactly, it's a way of sending a message,
50:02even if, you know, to tell you,
50:04hey, we know where you live.
50:07The next time it might be worse,
50:08God forbid it is,
50:10but certainly, you know, there was just a operation,
50:13I think, last Sunday,
50:15where they would have sitched another building
50:17in those premises.
50:19And they recovered a lot of contraband
50:23from cell phones to chargers to-
50:25I remember the knives.
50:26Yes, the shanks and so on, the improvised weapons.
50:29Weapons.
50:30Certainly cause for concern, of course.
50:32And I think the prison association
50:35has to continue to press,
50:36because there appears to be a link
50:39between the gang activity on the outside
50:41and what's taken.
50:42And there is a link within the prison walls.
50:47Yeah, certainly.
50:48And then, you know, there's also this
50:50complicity of a few officers
50:53that also has been raised in the public fore
50:57over the last couple of months.
50:59And it's an ongoing issue.
51:02You know, how do we combat that as well?
51:04And of course, on the flip side of that
51:07is the fact that some of these prison officers
51:09are actually intimidated or threatened
51:11if they don't do certain things.
51:13This is what will happen to their family.
51:16Pictures are sent.
51:17We know where you live.
51:18We know your family members and so on.
51:20So it's like being caught between a rock and a hard place.
51:22Yeah, very, very tricky situation
51:25that they've caught themselves in.
51:26But hopefully, you know, they have to continue
51:29to follow the law and report these things
51:32so that with the SOE, with the police involvement,
51:37some of these matters could be properly investigated
51:40and could get some results from it.
51:43Because I find it difficult for prison officers
51:46to be going to work, leaving their families,
51:48going to work, and have to work under these threats.
51:52Yeah, I agree with you, Philanger.
51:53And I know that, you know, a lot of them,
51:55even though their lives are under threat,
51:59they continue to perform the job, you know,
52:02that is required of them.
52:03A lot of them still try their best,
52:06even though they're under duress.
52:07I know a couple of them that reach out to me
52:09from time to time.
52:11You know, there was just a story recently
52:13on the Express yesterday
52:15about supposedly unauthorized conjugal visits.
52:19You know, we still await some semblance of word
52:22from the prison's commissioner, you know,
52:24messages, calls to him over the last couple of days
52:27prior to the publication of that article
52:30he did not answer.
52:32So we're hoping that things will improve in the prisons.
52:36Okay, so we're gonna go take a short break
52:39and we'll be back.
52:40Stay with us.
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54:29Welcome back to Beyond the Tape, I'm your host Marc Bessin,
54:31joined today by Captain Valence Ambarat from the Hunter's Search and Rescue Team.
54:36And I think that he has some good news to share with us this afternoon as we close.
54:41Right, so I met up with three young people.
54:45I would call them smart, they were questioning me a lot about Beyond the Tape
54:51and the activities of Hunter's Search and Rescue Team.
54:54And your activities as well, you know, they enjoy the program, they listen,
54:58they watch, they view the program with their parents.
55:02And so, from left to right there, you have Kirsten, you have Kavir,
55:07and you have Krishana Sivlal from Bodnar Village in Princess Town.
55:13Very smart kids, and the one in the middle, Kavir, questioned me a lot.
55:18So, he asked for a shout-out today on Beyond the Tape.
55:21So, I think it's nice to, you know, do that.
55:26The young ones are interested, and we also have to promote positive behaviors
55:31in children wherever we go.
55:33And let them understand that while they see a lot taking place out there,
55:39they have to follow a certain pathway, and that pathway has to be educated,
55:45be professionals, go out there, earn a living, and enjoy what you earn.
55:52And that will be the pathway for your life.
55:57And I think I enjoy interacting with kids all the time.
56:01So, I was really questioned, Mark.
56:03A thousand questions came at me, so you can imagine I answer questions for you.
56:07What were those questions you asked?
56:09Well, they asked how we go about planning the program.
56:12Do we have to sit down together and go through all the scripts and everything?
56:18So, I was able to tell them that, yes, it involves scripts.
56:21The segment that I have to do, I will have to prepare the work for it.
56:24You have your part to do, and we speak before the program,
56:29and then it's on air.
56:31That was one of the questions.
56:33They were very, very thorough in their questioning, but I enjoyed it,
56:37and I spent the time answering the questions because I like to engage kids.
56:42Well, certainly, and we want to encourage other youngsters
56:45like those three youngsters you saw there, you know, to take part,
56:49and listen, you know, sitting with your parents and educating yourself
56:53about the events that are happening in Trinidad and Tobago.
56:57And I know this is a very sensitive topic, crime, but, you know,
57:00we hope that the young upcoming citizens of Trinidad and Tobago
57:04can make a very positive difference, and, you know, something that is meaningful,
57:10and so that people will be able to appreciate as they grow older.
57:16And I think the manner in which the program is produced is kids could look at it.
57:20They are very, one or two, maybe less sensitive areas,
57:23but I think we not only talk about or present crime,
57:27but you talk about the solutions to crime and everything else.
57:32For example, Mark, do you know today, into Tuesdays,
57:35a unique period of time for Trinidad and Tobago.
57:40We have a highway alert together with a high seas alert.
57:43So people listening on to the program, please stay away from the seas.
57:48Don't go nowhere near any beach, please,
57:51because I don't want to have to come to look for you,
57:54because I'll be risking my life if anything happens.
57:58All right, so there you go.
58:00And of course, I cannot go without parting to say happy birthday to my aunt.
58:05She turned 85 on Saturday, and all the best to you and the Thomas family.
58:10All right, we run tonight at 11.30, repeat tomorrow at 11 o'clock.
58:16The TV6 News is up next. Stay with us.
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