00:00The same online voices who attack the SOE on a daily basis, they're attacking me, they're attacking the TTPS.
00:08Why? They want to keep the fear of crime in the atmosphere.
00:14So, is it because their business model depends on crime?
00:18Police Commissioner Alastair Guevaro speaking during the Chamber of Industry and Commerce's conversations with the Commissioner Police event in West
00:26Moorings.
00:27Trinidad and Tobago continues to be under a state of emergency that, similar to the last one, does not have
00:32a curfew and does not have any limitations on public gatherings, but provides broader powers to the police and the
00:39military.
00:40There have been murders and other violent crimes during the SOE, but the Police Commissioner said the official statistics show
00:47serious crime is down.
00:49Let me give you some operational facts about the SOE.
00:53So, we are on day 42, based on the data that I extrapolated here.
00:58And on day 42, we had 3,551 operations, 1,524 persons arrested, 340 persons charged, 317 persons recommended to
01:12be placed on preventative detention orders.
01:16251 PDOs have been approved by the minister, 158 have thus far been executed.
01:22So, we have 158 of them inside.
01:24The TTPS subsequently provided SOE data for day 45, which showed increased numbers, and also stated that 90 firearms were
01:33recovered, 2,196 rounds of ammunition were seized, 3,146 kilograms of cocaine were seized, and 337,040 kilograms of
01:46marijuana seized by law enforcement.
01:49The system department, which is the Crime and Problem Analysis Bureau, who told us that in 2024, we had the
01:58highest amount of homicides in our recorded history.
02:03In our ComStat on Tuesday told us that we currently have 13% homicides less than last year.
02:12After the chamber event, TV6 News posed the question to the police commissioner while he spoke with the media.
02:19Commissioner, could you see the successes that you have said that have occurred during the state of emergency?
02:24Could you see that occurring at some point without an SOE in terms of a sustainable long-term plan with
02:32the same successes but without the emergency power?
02:35So, that hopefully, we can achieve, but it would take some time to get all the elements of the strategies
02:42that we currently have in train.
02:45So, once we have all the dominoes lined up properly, we'll be able to see that taking place without a
02:49state of emergency.
02:51The police commissioner highlighted a particular challenge faced by law enforcement and the nation.
02:56I don't want to see Trader and Tobago having a state of emergency, even though you don't feel like it.
02:59But at the end of the day, we want to ensure that the country can be safe.
03:04You understand?
03:05I didn't like that trajectory.
03:07I saw from 20, 22, 20, 23, 20, 24, we reached 600 and something with us.
03:12Come on, man.
03:13That was crazy.
03:14The police commissioner told those at the TT Chambers event that there were 370 murders in 2025,
03:21which he said was the lowest annual figure since 2011.
03:25The only other country to reduce homicides by an annual percentage figure of 55%, we were 42, they went 55%,
03:35was El Salvador.
03:36And we all know what El Salvador had to do.
03:40In fact, this morning, I was looking at Al Jazeera.
03:45El Salvador has been under a state of emergency since 2022.
03:49And over 90,000 persons get arrested.
03:52It is now one of the safest countries in the world.
03:55The police commissioner then spoke about Trinidad and Tobago.
03:59And from our data and statistics, there's only less than 500 serious criminals we have in this country.
04:07Why are we having 500 people terrorizing 1.4 million?
04:10The current state of emergency in Trinidad and Tobago took effect on March 3rd.
04:14And on March 16th, the House of Representatives approved an initial three-month extension via the government's majority.
04:21Jewel Brown, TV6 News.
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