On the heels of an early morning double murder along Ariapita Avenue in Port of Spain, Police Commissioner Erla Christopher-Harewood is reaffirming the commitment of her officers to making Carnival 2023 a safe one. 

“With respect to the murders which occurred overnight, information unearthed so far is that both deceased are from the Morvant district and the current motive has been identified as gang related,” the Police Commisioner said in a statement on Saturday.

Both deceased have been identified, one only as “Jessie or Javon” of Morvant and the other as Atiba Rodriguez 37 yrs of Romain Lands Morvant, a mason employed at the Ministry of Works.

Meanwhile, a female British national visiting Trinidad for Carnival has been treated for an injury to one of her legs and
she has since been discharged.

“These incidents will obviously cause concern for me. However, I want to assure members of the public that these incidents are being vigorously pursued. Police Officers are out there in full strength doing everything possible to prevent further occurrences. Unfortunately, there are those who remain intent on creating chaos and mayhem,” the Top Cop lamented. 

A statement from the TTPS revealed that over the past 24 hours, three illegal firearms and over three kilos of marijuana were seized during nationwide anti-crime exercises. Over 15 persons have been arrested for various offences.

“The officers are working extremely hard to prevent such situations in every practical way. The TTPS will continue to be out there using all our resources and intelligence and working tirelessly and relentlessly to prevent these situations. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, unless citizens and visitors comply with the law, exercise restraint, and cooperate with the police in treating with lawlessness, the possibility of these incidents occurring will continue to be our challenge,” Mrs. Harewood-Christopher said.