Shane Superville
Senior Reporter
A police exercise in Piarco early yesterday morning resulted in the arrest of seven men, including suspected gang members who police believe were “hiding out” in the community after relocating from another part of the country.
According to a Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) media release, officers of the North-Central Division, together with the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF), the Guard and Emergency Branch, and supported by soldiers of the Trinidad and Tobago Regiment, launched the exercise at Oropune Gardens around 4 am. It concluded at approximately 6.45 am.
Seven men were arrested on Preventative Detention Orders (PDOs).
The TTPS said the exercise was intelligence-led and forms part of ongoing efforts to curb criminal activity in the Northern Division.
Sources told Guardian Media that among those detained were suspected members of a Muslim gang. The sources said officers from the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), which focuses on organised crime networks, also participated in the operation.
One source said some of those arrested were originally from East Port-of-Spain but had been staying in Oropune Gardens.
“They’re part of the same gang, but they operate in different areas. Those are guys from Port-of-Spain who have family there and stay there at times,” the source said.
Another source suggested the men may have been residing in the area after allegedly committing offences in and around the Port-of-Spain Division, in an attempt to evade law enforcement.
The investigation is continuing.
