The probe into the March 23 day of “total policing” by the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) is expected to be completed by year’s end.
If there is enough evidence to warrant disciplinary action against police officers the PCA will make the necessary recommendations, said the organisation’s director, attorney David West, yesterday.
Pressed further for a specific time-frame in the completion of the probe West said: “Let’s put it at the end of the year. I don’t want to bog down the investigators. We know that the population and the Police Service are anxious and we are trying our best to finish it as quickly as possible.
“We do not want to leave no stone unturned. It will be a comprehensive report.”
The amount of work to be done has been voluminous as material had to obtained from the Police Service as well as extensive interviews to be conducted among the rank and file, West said.
“We have to get all the documents from the Police Service and interview all the officers... from Tobago, Cedros, North and South... we have completed all the lower ranks and we are now dealing with the executive. Once we have completed that we would then hand in our report,” West added.
On whether he has been pleased with the investigation thus far, West said it could have been done faster.
A Joint Select Committee, chaired by former Independent Senator Dr Rolph Balgobin, was held in Parliament regarding the day of “total policing” and a report was submitted to the Senate.
Contacted yesterday Balgobin said when the committee forwarded its report Parliament had been prorogued soon after.
In its report the committee had expressed the view that the Police Service Social and Welfare Association appeared to have a role to play in the events of March 23 and that role was masked by staged activities, such as walkouts of formal meetings, designed to give the impression that whatever was done subsequently did not have the association’s sanction.
The committee had also noted then that Williams had said further action on the matter would be pursued after the PCA completed its investigation and presented a report.
He said if there was a new committee it would then now have to follow up on the matter.
“We can’t police recommendations. A Joint Select Committee like that would make recommendations and it is really for the competent authority to accept or not to accept the recommendations and therefore they can be called back to say what they accepted or not,” Balgobin said.
He said as far as he was aware none of the committee’s recommendations have been implemented, adding that it was up to acting Police Commissioner Stephen Williams to answer as to whether the Police Service had in fact accepted any of the recommendations.
Calls to Williams’ cellphone went unanswered yesterday.
Asked how would the Joint Select Committee report affect the PCA’s probe, West said his organisation would take the committee’s recommendations into account when submitting its own report.
“I cannot implement what the committee recommended but I could adopt their suggestions but I have not looked at it in detail. The investigators have looked at it in detail. When we get everything I will look at it,” West said.
Asked whether any disciplinary action would be taken against specific police officers West said it was too early to determine as the report was not yet completed.
“But it if it is an officer has breached some kind of standing order or Police Service regulations then within our remit which is serious police misconduct then we can recommend disciplinary action,” West said.
Other recommendations from the JSC
• The TTPS complete its investigation and that the findings of that investigation be forwarded to the PCA.
• Investigations should examine the role of the Guard and Emergency Branch (GEB) in the roadblock activities of March 23.
• The committee recommended further that the relationship between the officers conducting the roadblock exercises and the Police Service Social and Welfare Association should be investigated.
• The committee recommended that the relationship between the officers conducting the roadblock exercises and those attending the Police Association meeting of March 19 at the offices of the GEB be investigated.
• Given his status as vice-president of the association and his public statements, the role of Inspector Roger Alexander in the roadblock exercises should be further investigated.
• Given the suspicions surrounding the participation of the association in the activities of March 23, the committee advised that the role of the association in the active management of the Police Service be examined.
• Given their public statements and having regard to testimony to the committee, the levels of awareness of ACP Garfield Moore and Senior Supt Joanne Archie of roadblock activities on March 23 should be further investigated.
• The role of the GEB in relation to provision of security of the Parliament should be immediately reviewed.
• Intelligence gathering as an area of law enforcement should be given extra attention and possibly enhanced in order to prevent similar occurrences like that of March 23.
• The committee recommended that the intelligence resources which could detect internal threats should be examined and improved within the various agencies and departments responsible for matters of national security.
• The Police Service Commission should examine the number of acting appointments in the Police Service and request that the Commissioner of Police seeks to rectify same.