The Port-of-Spain Prison is now on high alert in response to word of a planned “violent break out” involving a man charged with murder in a high profile case.
Prisons Commissioner Sterling Stewart said security has been stepped up and they are liaising with their “national security counterparts to compare intelligence.”
Prisons officers who spoke to the GML Enterprise Desk on condition of anonymity are alleging that a member of a well-known group came into the prison last Thursday around 2 pm and “scoped out the security in the place and left without visiting anyone.” They said that to their amazement, “nothing was picked up on camera.”
The officers said when the man came into the prison, he was approached by prisons officers who demanded answers from him. The officers said this was fruitless as they were told by a senior (name called) that they should leave him alone.
The prisons officers subsequently took the man’s phone, checked it, and deleted photos which he took inside the jail.
Prisons officers said the prison was still on lock down and more officers were being called out. According to the prisons officers, the prisoner “has been laughing and talking about how he has the entire nation on panic,” but they continue to be on standby for anything untoward.
They have also been heightening security when prisoners are taken to court.
Only last Thursday, when the accused in the murder of senior counsel Dana Seetahal was taken to court, the Criminal Gang Intelligence Unit heightened security around the Port-of-Spain Magistrates Court, with officers of the Guard and Emergency branch and Mounted Branch officers taking up duty along the streets. The corner of St Vincent and Duke streets was blocked off with police barricades, as well as Knox and St Vincent streets as the officers patrolled the area.
Meanwhile, on Friday afternoon, a prisoner was moved out of the Port-of-Spain Prison after threats were made on his life for allegedly “squealing on inmates whom he has been helping to get arms and ammunition into the prison.”
It is alleged the prisoner, through his attorney, had sent recordings contained in a SIM card and a memory card to National Security Minister Edmund Dillon prompting ‘Operation Clean Sweep’ recently.
It is alleged that following the search, the prisoner informed the authorities of the planned prison break. There was to be an explosion in close proximity to his cell which would have been used as the escape route, he disclosed to the authorities.
Also on Friday afternoon, prisons officers said the leader of a well-known gang in Port-of-Spain, who goes by the nickname “Ten Cents,” was taken to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex for treatment after complaining of chest pains. Prisons officers said their colleagues who accompanied the prisoner to the hospital noticed a woman acting suspiciously while Ten Cents was being treated. They also noticed a group of men nearby. A police officer approached the woman, spoke to her, and asked her to leave. The T&T Guardian was told that when they got the woman to leave, the other individuals also left.
Within minutes, the police officer who had asked the woman to leave received a call “that there was a hit on him.” Ten Cents was treated and returned to the Port-of-Spain Prison.
Prisons officers said there has been an increased security presence at the prison, but they are still living in fear. “All we waiting on now is the boom,” they said.
Stewart said, “In light of the rumours the Prison Service is doing what it always does: we step up security and ensure it is functioning effectively. This includes human resources and technology.” He said they also contacted their “counterparts at National Security to see what intelligence they have, the police and army and take their intelligence. We have to keep on high alert because we have high-risk people.”
President of the Prison Officers Association Ceron Richards said, “Rumours of any infraction taking place we have to view it seriously, we have to take all the necessary precautions.”
He said the bottom line was that people have “interests and resources; when those two things match we have problems.”
Probe July 2015 prison break
Richards admitted that since the July 2015 prison break, a “number of security initiatives have been undertaken at the Port-of-Spain Prison, but to what it extent it will be effective I do not know.”
He is concerned that prisons officers and the system “have been left to slip while the criminal elements build capacity.
They know we are weak, they have the tools to take advantage, while we play the catch-up game.”
Richards lamented that the prison system in this country and the facilities are in the “18th century but the criminal element is in the 21st century, far advanced. That is the core of the problem.”
Richards has joined his men in calling for a “thorough investigation” into the July 2015 prison break in which PC Sherman Maynard was shot and killed.
Prisons officers said the July 2015 jail break was well thought out and senior officers (names called) were well aware of what was being planned. They allege that “there were pictures of the guns in jail, and they were seen throwing bags over the wall in the night.”
Officers claimed that a “senior prisons officer who is a station rep brought in a bag for Allan ‘Scanny’ Martin on the day before their escape,” and “just moments before the visit with Scanny, the officer was seen talking to Scanny’s wife.”
The prisons officers are alleging that “the bag which was passed to Scanny contained passports and visas to aid their escape.”
Scanny and Hamid Atwell were shot and killed by police during the prison break. A third prisoner who attempted to escape, Christopher “Monster” Selby, subsequently surrendered to police.
On March 27 this newspaper published an exclusive report by Camille Clarke which indicated that official minutes from an executive meeting which took place at the Prison’s Administration Building, Phillip Street, Port-of-Spain, on January 27, 2015, revealed that prisons officials were aware of plans for a jail break by inmates at the Port-of-Spain Prison.
But while the executives were aware of the escape plan, they failed to put security measures in place to prevent it or to alert the authorities. The jailbreak happened and PC Sherman Maynard lost his life. Two prisoners were also killed.
Following the jail break, three prisons officers were suspended—Lancelot Duntin, Mervyn Pierre and Lovell Wolfe. The men are accused of discrediting the reputation of the Prison Service by failing to act promptly on instructions contributing to the escape of the men, plus the shooting death of police officer PC Sherman Maynard who responded to the jail break.
Richards said the prison break must be “thoroughly investigated,” especially in light of the minutes which point to the executive having prior knowledge of the escape. He said the country must be told “if they had prior knowledge about the escape what did they do with it?”
He said officers have indicated they were not informed and were “left as sitting ducks.” A senior superintendent who was also suspended has indicated he had no prior information. The officers according to Richards have indicated they found out about the planned break mere minutes before it actually happened “giving them no time to do anything.”
Commissioner Stewart admitted that there was information about a planned escape last year, but he said “we got no specifics to say four men were going to escape on a specific date, there are always rumours and allegations of escapes.”
But he said it was based on information that police officers were stationed outside the prison on the day the men made their bid for freedom. “We were not taking anything lightly.”
Part 2, continuing tomorrow
Dillon RESPONDS
National Security Minister Edmund Dillon says increased security has been placed around the Port-of-Spain and Golden Grove prisons as the country’s national security forces treat with reports that there are plans for another prison break.
While he would not confirm or deny whether the reports which have come from prisons officers and other sources are true, Dillon is giving the country the assurance that every report is thoroughly investigated and appropriate action taken.
Speaking to the GML Enterprise Desk, Dillon said all reports of planned escapes whether they are rumours or not “are thoroughly investigated and intelligence on the ground would confirm or deny” and while he did not want to go into detail he said “no chances are taken and the Prison, Police and Defence Force are all involved.” He said, “We take no chances, we investigate and appropriate action is taken. One would notice the increase of armed security around the Port-of-Spain Prison and Golden Grove.” Dillon also said that the extent of the monitoring by the security forces involves “not just the security of the prisons but also the borders and state apparatus.”