The security booth inside the Golden Grove prison was set on fire by inmates yesterday as a near riot erupted in the exercise yard of the Remand Prison, the Sunday Guardian has learned.
The situation arose after some 500 prisoners were placed in the exercise yard while a special search of cells was conducted by officers of the Police Service, prisons and army.
A firearm was said to have been found during the search but this could not be confirmed.
Around 6 am yesterday, the joint exercise began at the Golden Grove Remand Prison and continued until after 8 pm.
Prisoners from the northern wing of the Golden Grove prison were taken out of their cells and placed in the exercise yard. Inmates from the upper northern wing are said to belong to the Rasta City gang while inmates from the lower northern wing are said to belong to the Muslim gang.
The Rasta City and Muslim gangs are at war both inside and outside the prison.
While there was some tension in the exercise yard because of the warring gangs, the situation became more agitated when 11 o’clock came and the prisoners were not let inside for food.
The lunch time at the prison usually starts at 10.30 am.
The rain also started to fall.
When 3 pm came and the prisoners were still outside in the exercise yard, the situation reportedly came to a boil.
Dinner time at the prison is usually between 2 and 2.30 pm.
The prisoners were not allowed inside for either lunch or dinner.
At that point, the prisoners set off the alarm at the security booth.
The alarm rang for up to ten minutes.
After still not being let inside the prisoners set fire to the security booth.
At this point, officers of the Guard and Emergency Branch (GEB) of the Police Service entered the exercise area to quell the disturbance, leading to a stand-off between the police and inmates.
The GEB officers dressed in full riot gear are said to have shot some of the inmates, who were throwing items at them, with rubber bullets.
Several inmates were said to have been beaten during the incident and the fire at the security booth was extinguished.
Inmates also attempted to set the laundry room on fire but were unsuccessful.
The situation was eventually quelled.
When the Sunday Guardian visited the prison late yesterday, a bus load of GEB officers was seen leaving.
The inmates were allowed back into the northern wing around 6 pm where they were fed.
This is the latest search of the prison to take place in recent weeks.
Last week, the Sunday Guardian exclusively reported that the Port-of-Spain prison was 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 had been stepped up and they are liaising with their “national security counterparts to compare intelligence.”
Last week, extra jammers were installed at both the Port-of-Spain and Golden Grove prisons.
Attempts to contact Stewart on yesterday’s exercise proved futile.
In July last year, three prisoners escaped from the Port-of-Spain prison armed with guns and a grenade.
Allan “Scanny” Martin and Hassan Atwell were eventually killed while Christopher “Monster” Selby is back in custody.