100 MURDERS IN 85 DAYS: T&T POLICE CANNOT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PORT OF SPAIN 000406

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

DEPT FOR WHA/CAR, INL/LP

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KCRM SNAR TD
SUBJECT: 100 MURDERS IN 85 DAYS: T&T POLICE CANNOT
KEEP UP

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MARCH 2006: 42 MURDERS IN 26 DAYS
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1. (SBU) SUMMARY: One hundred murders have been
committed in Trinidad and Tobago in the first 85 days
of 2006. Police officers attribute the problem to a
combination of guns, drugs and gangs. Additionally, a
track record of police incompetence and fears of
repercussions keep civilians from working with the
police force, further exacerbating the problem. The
Government has turned to foreign law enforcement
consultants and technology as local law enforcers seem
overwhelmed by the upsurge in crime and may benefit
from basic training in police work. END SUMMARY.


2. (U) March 2006 is officially the "bloodiest month
on record" in Trinidad and Tobago with 42 murders in 26
days, pushing the murder toll to 100 in only 85 days.
If murders continue at this rate, at least 430
Trinbagonians will be murdered by the end of the year,
compared to 384 in 2005, which holds the murder record
for any one year. T&T law enforcement officials
continue to meet to develop strategies for catching and
prosecuting the criminals, especially in light of
intense media coverage.


3. (U) Largely, the murders are confined to certain
neighborhoods around Port of Spain: Laventille,
Morvant and Diego Martin. Since colonial times,
Laventille, just to the east and north of Port of
Spain, has been a center of rebellion that generally
makes its own rules and is a perpetual source of crime.
Morvant, contiguous to Laventille, also has a higher
than average concentration of crime. Now, the murders
are spreading to Diego Martin (west and north of Port
of Spain),which is a more upscale neighborhood. It
seems that criminals are migrating into Diego Martin to
hide out, but that their rivals still track them down.

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GUNS, GANGS AND DRUGS
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4. (SBU) Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) for
Operations, Winston Cooper, points to the trio of guns,
gangs and drugs as the root cause of the high murder
rate. ACP Cooper speculates that many of the murders
are essentially retaliation and jockeying for position
after a gang leader gets killed. He asserts that the
government's controversial Unemployment Relief Program
(URP) funds drug purchases by providing otherwise
unemployed persons with salaries for 10-day shifts
doing public works. Further, ACP Cooper suspects some
of the murders occur because of "employment turf wars,"
or fights over who works where for whom, casting
suspicion on URP foremen and work group leaders. A
higher-than-average proportion of murder victims had
some affiliation with the URP.


5. (SBU) The third point of this deadly triangle, the
guns, is the most slippery. ACP Cooper speculates that
the guns are smuggled in via nearby Venezuela.
Trinidad's numerous small bays and coves provide
excellent cover for criminals who wish to import
contraband into the country. It is widely believed
that the gun trade comes along with the narcotics
trafficking; the country is flush with small arms.

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POLICE MISTRUSTED, CANNOT KEEP UP
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6. (U) Many Trinbagonians distrust the police. Some
fear retaliation if they call the police to report a
crime. The police force has a history of being non-
responsive to calls for assistance and a reputation for
being on the take. Although it seems to be a positive
sign, many Trinbagonians point to the number of police
being brought up on charges for criminal activity as
reason not to trust them. Additionally, the police
career is widely seen as a "fall back" career, one that
nearly nobody enters as a first choice. As such, the
force is perceived to lack a certain professionalism.
Since people do not trust the police force, they do not
report crimes to them. This hampers investigations,
especially since most criminal cases are prosecuted
based on eyewitness testimony; Trinbagonian

PORT OF SP 00000406 002 OF 002


jurisprudence makes it difficult to introduce other
forms of evidence, such as DNA or wiretapped evidence.


7. (SBU) ACP Cooper and other law enforcement agents
argue that they are doing their best, but need support
from the community. They also point to the need for
more up-to-date training and better equipment. Deputy
Commissioner of Police Glen Roach has mentioned public
relations training so that the police force can burnish
its image and regain the public's trust.

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COMMENT: TECHNOLOGY OR BASIC TRAINING?
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8. (SBU) COMMENT: Most Trinbagonians now speculate
not about if, but when the next murder will happen.
The public perception of the police force is part of
the problem. Reformers at the top receive no credit
for their work, and without support cannot make changes
fast enough to stem the rising criminal tide. This
feeds a cycle in which the police force cannot keep up
with the criminals, a culture of impunity perpetuates,
and the population gets more and more disillusioned
with the police. The Government of Trinidad and Tobago
has turned to technology and outside consultants to
bolster the police force and law enforcement agencies,
which seem to be overwhelmed by the upsurge in crime.
It seems that so far, equal weight has not been put on
providing basic training in police work. We are
attempting to rectify with our meager law enforcement
and counter narcotics assistance by providing training
opportunities, including establishing a self-sustaining
canine training academy and basic crime scene
investigation and anti-kidnapping training as well as
conducting joint exercises with counter narcotics
agencies. END COMMENT.


AUSTIN