NEWSDAY MAY 16, 2 K 14 JUSTICE IN GOD’S HANDS By Rachael Espinet Friday, May 16 2014 Sunday marks two weeks since the murder of Senior Counsel Dana Seetahal and her eldest sister, Rosie, is losing hope that the police will ever find her killers. Seetahal, 59, was assassinated at about 12.05 am on May 4 in what sources said was a “hit” organised from behind the walls of the Port-of-Spain Prison. The State prosecutor had just left Ma Pau Casino on Ariapita Avenue, Woodbrook and was proceeding along Hamilton Holder Street, on her way home to One Woodbrook Place, when two vehicles — a panel van and a white station wagon — sandwiched her silver-coloured Volkswagen SUV and the assailants opened fire, killing her instantly. Seetahal was the lone occupant in the car, and reports are that she was shot multiple times in the head and chest. “They (the police) are not doing anything at all. They are not efficient as far as I am concerned. I am just leaving it in the hands of the Lord now,” Rosie told Newsday yesterday. At the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service’s (TTPS) weekly press briefing on Wednesday, the police gave no new updates on the investigation into Seetahal’s murder. Inspector Wayne Mystar, Public Information Officer for the TTPS said, “The Commissioner of Police made a pronouncement on that matter, and it stands the same. We continue to work assiduously on that investigation. As soon as we have meaningful updates, we will inform the media.” In the last Sunday Newsday sources stated a 30-year-old man was held at a house in Arima on Saturday night in connection with the murder. He has since been released, according to reports. However, Acting Commissioner of Police Stephen Williams, Assistant Commissioner of Police Wayne Dick, the head of the Homicide Investigations Bureau, and National Security Minister Gary Griffith have all said no suspects were detained. A $3.5 million reward has been posted for information that would lead to the arrest and conviction of Seetahal’s killers. Seetahal’s murder has drawn nationwide condemnation and assurances from the Government that all resources will be utilised, even foreign expertise if necessary, to bring her killers to justice. For Rosie, however, her sister’s killing is another sign of the runaway crime in the country which no one seems capable of solving. “Lots of things are going on in the country and the police are not doing anything about it. This (her sister’s death) makes no difference,” Rosie said. Speaking on the state of her family, Rosie said they are all still in deep grief. “We are trying to cope, but we really just don’t know how to,” she said. Seetahal was the eighth of 11 children in the family. Yesterday, would have been a week since Seetahal’s cremation following a funeral at Aramalaya Presbyterian Church, Tunapuna, which could barely hold all of the mourners, among them President Anthony Carmona, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Chief Justice Ivor Archie and Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley. Persad-Bissessar yesterday reiterated Government’s committment to making available the necessary resources for the investigation of Seetahal’s murder. Speaking at a Mother’s Day Tea Party at the Diplomatic Centre, St Ann’s, Persad-Bissessar praised Seetahal as “a woman who dedicated her life to justice”, vowing to “ensure that whoever (committed the heinous act) faces the full brunt of the criminal justice system.” In addition to her life’s achievements as an attorney and in other portfolios she held, Persad-Bissessar said Seetahal was a woman described by family and closest friends as a confidant who must be truly celebrated as a mother figure. A moment’s silence was observed for Seetahal. The Mother’s Day function had been scheduled for last Thursday, but it was postponed because it was also the day of Seetahal’s funeral. Meanwhile, in a press release from the National Security Ministry, Griffith, addressing criticisms of how police was handling crime, especially recent murders, said it was “unfair to criticise the country’s law enforcement officers without giving them the proper support to take the fight to the criminals.” He stated the law enforcement officers cannot perform to their best ability because they do not have “the proper tools, training, experience and the administrative and logistical support.” Addressing criticism regarding the low detection rate, Griffith further defended the police by saying “the ultimate weapon against brining criminals to justice was human intelligence.” He urged the members of the public to come forward with any information that may assist with any criminal investigation.
Posted on: Fri, 16 May 2014 10:10:39 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015