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THE TESTIMONY of four policemen – including Minister of Homeland Security Roger Alexander – in a case of a man who was charged with shooting at police over 20 years ago, has been discredited by a judge who delivered his verdict in the case on May 27
As a result, Charford Court, Port of Spain resident Ken Foster walked free after the judge dismissed the evidence of Alexander and the three officers, as well as the evidence of a police photographer, in the judge-only trial.
Foster was charged with shooting with intent to cause grievous bodily harm to officers Roger Alexander, Phillip Forbes, Andrew Lawrence and Victor Graham on April 3, 2002, along with illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Alexander resigned from the police service at the rank of senior superintendent, subsequently joined the UNC and was elected Tunapuna MP in the April 28 general election.
He was appointed Minister of Homeland Security when the ministry of national security was split into two entities, with the other being the Ministry of Defence, led by Sangre Grande MP Wayne Sturge.
During the judge-only trial which began in March, Justice Hayden St Clair-Douglas heard testimony from the four officers and the police photographer.
The prosecution claimed the four officers who at the time were assigned to North Eastern Division Task Force in Morvant, were on patrol when they received a report of a stolen Nissan B14. They allegedly spotted the car in Belmont and gave chase to Lady Young Road, where the four claimed Foster, the sole passenger, opened fire on them near Jusamco Quarry.
The chase continued to the walkover along the Lady Young Road, when it was alleged Foster again shot at the officers, resulting in Alexander returning fire and shooting Foster in the buttocks.
Prosecutors contended that Foster acted brazenly and Alexander had no choice but to react. Foster was also accused of jumping on the “police too wicked” bandwagon, in his defence, by alleging that the officers “set me up.”
St Clair-Douglas was asked to disregard what was nothing more than a “smokescreen” by Foster to disguise his actions 23 years ago.
Foster’s attorney Peter Carter said the prosecution’s case was riddled with holes as he challenged the integrity of the case.
Although Foster did not testify, his defence centred on a flat denial of the allegations.
He also claimed that officers attempted to pressure him into falsely identifying Kerwin "Fresh" Phillip, one-time leader of the G-Unit Gang as the passenger of the car, and he was only charged because he refused and the police were unable to set Phillip up with a case. Phillip was gunned down in 2007.
Carter highlighted serious discrepancies in the officers' testimonies, procedural failures, and apparent mishandling of evidence. He pointed to the lack of any immediate crime scene processing, the absence of a contemporaneous police station diary entry, signs of possible collusion in the officers' written statements, and inconsistencies in the chain of custody for the gun and spent shell casings.
In delivering his verdict during a virtual hearing, St Clair-Douglas gave detailed reasons for his ruling, noting the contradictions in the officers’ accounts and unresolved concerns about potential evidence tampering. Specifically, he flagged unexplained changes in the markings on the shells and the firearm and said the State had not satisfactorily addressed those issues.
“These discrepancies leave the court in doubt,” the judge said. “Looking at the evidence as a whole, I am not sure the accused shot at anyone. I am not sure he was in possession of a firearm or ammunition.”
Declaring Foster not guilty, St Clair-Douglas formally discharged him and told him he was free to go.
The state was represented by prosecutor Tricia Samuel.
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