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Police say more charges are possible as a result of investigations launched against people arrested during the state of emergency (SoE).
The SoE, which began on December 30 and ended on April 13, saw 50 people detained under the authority of a Preventive Detention Order.
Of that number, 14 people who police said are affiliated with two particular gangs, were charged with multiple gang-related offences.
Despite the release of the remaining 34, police have always maintained investigations are continuing and they can be charged at a later date.
At the police media briefing on May 27, TTPS legal officer Cpl Zaheer Ali said the investigations “have progressed evidentially.” Asked for an update on the possibility of more people being charged, Ali said, “In some instances, those investigative files are engaging the legal officers in the TTPS.”
“And in some instances, consultations are ongoing with the Director of Public Prosecutions, so I anticipate that in the near future and within a reasonable time, our commissioner will be able to respond as to whether in fact those cases have matured to attract prosecutions.”
Ali said police have been “thinking out of the box” to address the challenges they faced in completing the investigations.
“We are exploring the law and we have made some progress. When you are dealing with organised crime and gang investigations, those are complex matters. And when you are heavily dependent on witnesses to come forward, it definitely will create a challenge.”
Acting Police Commissioner Junior Benjamin said police are pleased with crime statistics this year in comparison to previous years, describing it as a small win. He noted there has been a year-on-year reduction in violent crimes including murders.
There were 228 murders between January 1 and May 27, 2024 compared to 153 for the same period this year. This is an even further decrease from the 242, during that same period, in 2023.
“When we look at our murders we have at least a 33 per cent reduction, against that of last year. When we look at our violent crimes in 2024 we had, 1991 reports. Now in 2025 we have only 1424 reports. That is a 28 per cent reduction.”
Breaking the figure down by month, Benjamin said there have been 23 murders in May compared to 52 murders in May 2024, and 49 in May 2023. He attributed the decline to the hard work of the police.
“We are not just seeing a reduction in murders, but also a reduction in terms of woundings and shootings.
“In 2024, we had 297, in 2025 we have 210. We are also seeing a reduction in terms of sexual offences with 338 reports in 2024, and 330 in 2025.”
He said police are grateful for the “positive change,” and added Port of Spain, Tobago and North Central divisions have had the highest murder rate reduction with 68, 69 and 70 per cent, respectively.
Benjamin said despite these gains, police are still not satisfied and urged the public to join them in the fight against crime to ensure any progress made, is not lost.
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