As the authorities prepared for retaliatory shootings following an attempt on the life of a gang boss, Trinidad and Tobago announced a state of emergency on Monday, according to officials.
Authorities claimed the emergency will be used to begin an anti-gang crackdown in the Caribbean country of two islands off the coast of Venezuela.
Increased military and police operations will accompany the announcement, even if there won’t be a curfew.
Stuart Young, a minister in the prime minister’s office, stated during a press conference that defense forces will effectively become police officers and that both are permitted to conduct searches without a warrant.
Those suspected of committing a crime may be detained for 48 hours without being charged, and bail will be suspended. According to Young, a court’s approval might extend that by an additional seven days.
According to Trinidad and Tobago Newsday, a member of a well-known gang leader’s squad was killed when armed gunmen opened fire on him on Saturday as he was leaving the police station.
The gang leader was not identified in the report.
According to Newsday, five men were shot dead on Sunday night in what is thought to be retaliatory action.
At a news conference, National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds assured reporters, “I have no doubt that we are dealing with an epidemic.”
This year has seen a record number of homicides in Trinidad and Tobago.
According to Hinds, gang-related operations have been responsible for 263 of the island republic’s record 623 homicides so far this year.
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