Trinidad and Tobago Declares State of Emergency Over Criminal Network Operating from Prisons
Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro. X/ @expressupdates
July 18, 2025 Hour: 9:58 am
Inmates are planning attacks on key figures in the national security and justice sectors, Police Commissioner Guevarro said.
On Friday, Trinidad and Tobago declared a state of emergency in response to what it described as “a coordinated and dangerous criminal network operating from the national prison system.”
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President Christine Kangaloo signed the proclamation following a formal recommendation by Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro. The declaration does not currently include a curfew.
Incarcerated individuals have been actively using “internal and external networks to plan and carry out attacks on key figures in the national security and justice sectors,” Guevarro stated.
These efforts are not isolated incidents, but part of “a structured campaign involving multiple criminal entities,” with targets including high-ranking police officers, officials from the Office of the Attorney General, and personnel from the prison service.
A major factor contributing to the threat has been the unauthorized trafficking of cellphones into prisons, which has enabled encrypted communications and real-time coordination between inmates and external criminal operatives.
Police added that the operations are financed through a variety of violent and organized criminal activities, including high-value robberies, armed home invasions, extortion, kidnapping, and infiltration of government-funded contracts and programs.
Because these activities exceed the containment capacity of conventional security measures, authorities recommended the declaration of a state of emergency as “a comprehensive and immediate strategic response to safeguard national stability and protect public officials.”
The emergency order empowers law enforcement to carry out rapid containment actions, enhance inter-agency coordination, and deploy additional resources with the necessary authority to neutralize the threat.
A high-level Threat Response Group has been established, composed of various branches of law enforcement. Immediate steps have included the strategic transfer and relocation of key incarcerated individuals to destabilize command structures and prevent further coordination.
Police units have already launched targeted operations, both overt and covert, which will continue until the threat is neutralized.
Authorities stated that these extraordinary measures are necessary to “preserve public order, restore confidence in national security, and ensure the country’s stability.” They urged citizens to remain calm, comply with law enforcement directives, and report any suspicious activity to the relevant authorities.
Trinidad and Tobago has been experiencing a surge in violence and crime, with a record 620 homicides reported in 2024.
teleSUR/ JF
Source: EFE – WIC News
