DISCLAIMER: We are not affiliated with the family of Joshua Samaroo or their legal team; we are not affiliated with Kaia Sealy, her family, her protesting friends, or her legal team; and we are not affiliated with the TTPS. We are for justice, for the innocent, for T&T. This page presents a chronological, but by no means complete, list of developments reported in T&T’s mainstream media from January 21st to May 30th. We have included none of our opinions, except to say this:
Most of T&T’s citizens protest against crime every day. By paying TTPS salaries; paying Prison Officers’ salaries; paying members of the Judiciary and State Attorneys; maintaining police stations, courts, and prisons, and their services and equipment; and very importantly, by paying Parliamentarians to make and support good policy and legislation, in or out of Government. If any of these persons whose legitimate actions most citizens endorse, are found to be committing or facilitating crime, then that may require a different, but still lawful, kind of protest.
Senior officers in the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service say officers will continue to defend themselves against any and all threats when confronted by armed criminals.
The warning came after a police-involved shooting in St Augustine yesterday, which left one man dead and his female accomplice in a critical condition at the hospital.
Police identified the man as Joshua Samaroo.
By Anna-Lisa Paul, from the T&T Guardian
An attorney acting on behalf of the woman critically injured by police during Tuesday’s operation in Spring Village, Valsayn, which also left one man dead, has written to Commissioner of Police Allister Guevarro requesting transparent details about what took place.
By Gyasi Gonzales, from the Daily Express
Public outrage continues to grow over the fatal police shooting of Joshua Samaroo, as viewers of disturbing CCTV footage question why there has been no clear response from the Commissioner of Police on whether the officers involved remain on active duty or are being treated as subjects in a criminal investigation.
By Richard Charan, from the Daily Express
Police murdered my son.
These were the words of Christopher Samaroo, the father of Joshua Samaroo yesterday, hours after CCTV (closed-circuit television) footage of the police-involved shooting that claimed Joshua’s life and left his wife, Kaia Sealy, paralysed was made public.
By Alexander Bruzual, from the Daily Express
Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro entered office with the rare gifts of public optimism, unanimous parliamentary approval and a background in the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS)’s most refined unit. Seven months later, he risks losing all three.
Editorial, from the Daily Express
Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro wants the public to withhold judgment following the fatal Valsayn shooting that claimed the life of Joshua Samaroo, 31, and left his common-law wife, Kaia Sealy, 31, critically injured and paralysed.
By Richard Charan, from the Daily Express
KAIA SEALY, who was shot multiple times when police opened fire on her common-law husband’s car after a chase that ended in Valsayn, remained in stable condition at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mt Hope, under police guard up to last night.
By Gyasi Gonzales, from the Daily Express
With one tone-deaf statement, Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro has lowered the public’s already low confidence in the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS).
Editorial, from the Daily Express
THE Law Association of Trinidad and Tobago (LATT) has expressed concern over statements made by Commissioner of Police Allister Guevarro following the police shooting that killed 31-year-old Joshua Samaroo and hospitalised his common-law wife, Kaia Sealy.
By Khamarie Rodriguez, from the Daily Express
The family of Kaia Sealy has confirmed that the police shooting which killed her common-law husband, Joshua Samaroo, has left the 31-year-old woman paralysed and their five-year-old daughter “deprived in the most profound way of her parents’ care and normal life.”
By Richard Charan, from the Daily Express
An attorney, acting on behalf of Kaia Sealy who was injured during an (sic) confrontation with police that left her common-law husband dead, has called for protection of the law and an investigation conducted with integrity and accountability.
By Gyasi Gonzales, from the Daily Express
Friends of Kaia Sealy, the 25-year-old woman critically injured by police last week, will stage a protest on Sunday at Woodford Square, opposite the Red House, calling for justice for her and her common-law husband, Joshua Samaroo, who was killed by police.
By Verdel Bishop, from the Daily Express
Friends of Joshua Samaroo’s common-law wife, Kaia Sealy, are expected to take to the streets of Port-of-Spain today to call for justice for the 28-year-old woman who was left paralysed after a police-involved shooting. It was that incident that ended Samaroo’s life.
Samaroo’s relatives, who said he had no criminal record and was never arrested, spoke openly about how his killing has shaken their lives.
By Shaliza Hassanali, from the T&T Guardian
Anger and grief erupted yesterday as friends, family, and supporters demanded the resignations of Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro and Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander. The calls followed a brazen police-involved shooting in St Augustine that left Joshua Samaroo dead and his common-law wife, Kaia Sealy, critically injured and paralysed.
By Andrea Perez-Sobers, from the T&T Guardian
Police officers in riot gear were called out yesterday as dozens of protesters gathered outside the Red House along Abercromby Street, Port of Spain, to demand accountability following a police-involved shooting in St Augustine on January 20.
By Alexander Bruzual, from the Daily Express
The family of Kaia Sealy, who was shot three times by police during a fatal encounter in St Augustine last month, has launched a public fundraising drive to help cover her mounting medical and rehabilitation expenses.
By Mark Bassant, from the Daily Express
“THEY’RE LYING! They’re lying! There was no gun.”
This is what Kaia Sealy kept screaming out at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EWMSC) in Mt Hope hours after she was shot and injured during a police shooting in St Augustine on January 20 that claimed the life of her husband, 31-year-old Joshua Samaroo.
By Mark Bassant, from the Daily Express
An attorney representing the interests of Joshua Samaroo, shot and killed by police last month have (sic) requested almost all reports from police relating to the incident that also left Samaroo’s common-law wife, Kaia Sealy partially paralysed.
By Gyasi Gonzales, from the Daily Express
The presence of several police officers at the funeral of Joshua Samaroo, who was killed last month during an incident with law enforcement in St Augustine, left some of his family members uneasy yesterday.
By Alexander Bruzual, from the Daily Express
“My girl, my girl, you hit my girl!”
These were the dying words of 31-year-old Joshua Samaroo, as related in a statement given to police last Thursday by his paralysed wife, Kaia Sealy.
By Mark Bassant, from the Daily Express
Police shooting victim Kaia Sealy is refusing to give up her fight for justice even as she remains confined to a hospital bed and continues to be denied access to police records and her personal devices.
By Anna-Lisa Paul, from the T&T Guardian
Attorneys representing Kaia Sealy have successfully challenged the actions of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) in the retention of her electronic devices following the police shooting of January 20, which left her partner Joshua Samaroo dead.
By Anna-Lisa Paul, from CNC3
“We’ll kill the whole family and Kaia.”
Those were the chilling words that marked the beginning of a series of Instagram messages and voice notes sent last week to a close family friend of Joshua Samaroo—allegedly by a man known as “Dougla”, who is believed to have met Samaroo in Maloney less than an hour before he was fatally shot by police in St Augustine on January 20.
By Mark Bassant, from the Sunday Express
[The Dada Sixx killing - By Anna-Lisa Paul, from the T&T Guardian]
Relatives and friends of Joshua Samaroo and Kaia Sealy continued their weekly protest yesterday as they stood outside the Tunapuna Police Station calling for justice in the police-involved shooting.
By Anna-Lisa Paul, from the T&T Guardian
Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro has confirmed that the investigation into the police-involved shooting that left Joshua Samaroo dead and Kaia Sealy injured is at an advanced stage, with the case file now being prepared for submission to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
By Melissa Maynard, from the Daily Express
The Police Service has issued a warning to those planning to protest police killings, specifically in the case of Joshua Samaroo, who was shot dead inside a car in which his girlfriend was critically wounded.
From the Daily Express
Alyssa Phillip, one of the activists who led demonstrations following the police killing of Joshua Samaroo and the wounding of his common-law wife, Kaia Sealy, in January, says she is not optimistic that anyone will be held accountable if wrongdoing is found.
By Shane Superville, from the T&T Guardian
Investigations into the police-involved shooting that led to the death of Joshua Samaroo and the wounding of his common-law wife Kaia Sealy are still underway, even as Sealy continues a long recovery process following the shooting.
This was revealed by members of their families and friends yesterday, as they continued what has been a series of protests calling for justice in the matter, this time outside the Four Roads Police Station in Diego Martin.
By Shane Superville, from the T&T Guardian
The police are awaiting forensic reports in the investigations into the police-involved shooting that left Joshua Samaroo dead and Kaia Sealy injured in January.
By Alexander Bruzual, from the Daily Express
POLICE have reported that a forensic report into the January 20 shooting death of Joshua Samaroo and injury of his common-law wife, Kaia Sealy, has been received and investigators are expected to approach the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for his determination.
From the Daily Express
Commissioner of Police Allister Guevarro has disclosed that the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions has directed investigators to proceed with criminal charges against people in the fatal shooting of Joshua Samaroo and the wounding of his common-law wife, Kaia Sealy.
From the Daily Express
The woman left paralysed after the police shooting that killed Joshua Samaroo is now facing criminal charges linked to the same incident, months after video footage of the shooting sparked public outrage and calls for accountability.
From the T&T Guardian
Former Police Commissioner Gary Griffith is calling on the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service to justify the decision to charge the girlfriend of deceased shooting victim Joshua Samaroo, warning that public confidence in law enforcement has already been severely damaged.
By Jesse Ramdeo, from the T&T Guardian
Four months after Joshua Samaroo was allegedly killed by police officers during a dramatic shootout in St Augustine, the case took a shocking twist yesterday, after directions were given for his girlfriend, Kaia Sealy, to be charged with manslaughter in his death.
By Anna-Lisa Paul, from the T&T Guardian
Kaia Sealy says she is “shocked and deeply distressed” by reports that she is facing criminal charges in connection with the fatal shooting of her partner, Joshua Samaroo, insisting she remains innocent and has been wrongly portrayed.
From the T&T Guardian
Attorney Fayola Sandy has released a statement on behalf of Kaia Sealy from the United States, where Sealy is undergoing treatment for injuries she sustained during the January 20 police shooting incident that left her common-law husband Joshua Samaroo dead.
From the Daily Express
Whilst Kaia Sealy has insisted she is not a gangster and has never held a gun in her life, police allege she was armed with a Glock 9mm pistol which was recovered from the vehicle driven by her common-law husband, Joshua Samaroo, in which she was a passenger.
By Anna Ramdass, from the Daily Express
Responding to a question from the Express about the police arrest warrants against Kaia Sealy, whose common-law husband Joshua Samaroo was killed by police officers in January, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar offered two quotes—one inappropriate, the other politically obtuse—via WhatsApp.
Editorial, from the Daily Express
The charges against Kaia Sealy continue to climb. Following a virtual hearing yesterday, Guardian Media was informed that four additional charges were levelled against her for alleged gun and ammunition offences.
By Anna-Lisa Paul, from the T&T Guardian
Attorney Fayola Sandy says her client, Kaia Sealy, is willing to return to Trinidad and Tobago from abroad to face any legal proceedings.
By Vivian Bowen, from the Daily Express
Kaia Sealy is not a fugitive and is willing to surrender herself to local authorities as soon as she is medically cleared to travel back from the United States.
By Anna-Lisa Paul, from the T&T Guardian
Tensions flared in Port-of-Spain yesterday as a protest demanding transparency in a controversial police-involved shooting ended with the arrest of the organiser and her mother following a confrontation with officers.
By Shane Superville, from the T&T Guardian
Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Roger Gaspard has issued a warning to media organisations and social media users against publishing material that could prejudice ongoing criminal proceedings arising from the killing of Joshua Samaroo.
From the T&T Guardian