Gun Talk...

No one buys a drill because one wants a drill, one buys a drill because one wants a hole.

Likewise eighteen high powered, automatic, sub machine guns; no one buys large quantities of guns just to have guns.

Officers claimed they stumbled upon guns and ammunition, marijuana for the purpose of trafficking and devices used to smoke marijuana when they went in search of documents and material relating to the investigations into the Urban Development Corporation of T&T (Udecott) at the home of deceased contractor, Hafeez Karamath.

Besides proving that even incompetence benefits from luck, what the public needs to know is:

What was the intended purpose of these sophisticated weapons?

How did they come to be in Trinidad in the hands of private individuals?

Is this the complete set, or are they part of a 'larger' inventory?

As unbelievable as the discovery was, what was even more amazing to those watching was the decision by Senior Magistrate Joan Eversley-Gill to grant the accused bail with so many questions still unanswered.

“The prosecution’s objection to bail was on the basis that the court should take into consideration the seriousness of the offence. “I agree. This matter is a very serious matter which carries harsh penalties. We are living in very violent times and the scourge of crime in society was as a result of gun possession.” She said while the point made by the prosecution was a valid one, the court had to be guided by the Bail Act. She explained: “In recent times, the Bail Act has been amended because of the present crime situation but those amendments do not apply to this case." (Trinidad Guardian)

That may indeed be so, but isn't the greater good more important here?

Shouldn't the Government be front and center on this matter to make their anti crime point?

This wasn't the criminal element or known areas of interest, but the heart of high society in the quiet suburbs of our rich and famous. This wasn't one weapon secreted away for self defense, but a cache of weapons designed for waging war. It is precisely for these reasons that a strong example needs to be set in this matter. These people need to be interrogated as to the origin, means, and purpose of these weapons, and the State needs to take a strong stance on this matter if it wants to make any inroads into the current wave of violent crime plaguing this country. Make no mistake, they are now criminals in every material sense of the word and need to be treated as such. 

Our legal institutions must take great care to not frustrate the efforts of the Police Service by appearing 'soft hearted' to would be criminals, as nothing is more demotivating to our good men in uniform than having those who deem themselves untouchable proven right. All arms of Law & Order need to work together to break the backs of violent criminal enterprise equally and with full force across the board, so that the people can be given renewed confidence in our Police Service, our Magistracy and our Judiciary.

According to the Newsday article of Saturday August 21st - "It was purely by accident that the police stumbled upon a cache of arms, ammunition and drugs during a search carried out on Thursday at Karamath’s residence as part of the ongoing probe into alleged corrupt activities at the Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago (Udecott)".

In other words, no one in law enforcement knew of these weapons, and one is left to wonder just how many more private armies are there out there awaiting instruction to wage war.

And, more importantly, against who?