3 weeks ago
5
Senior Investigative Reporter
Corruption among a small clique of prison officers over the years has brought the prison system to its knees. Organised crime and silent complicity have turned Trinidad and Tobago’s prison system into a breeding ground for chaos, driven not just by the prisoners but by those entrusted to guard them. Behind these walls, the line between law enforcer and lawbreaker is dangerously blurred, and the consequences are deadly for some officers.
Prison authorities said two per cent of the 2,700 officers have not been operating within the law, and their actions have put the lives of the remaining 98 per cent at risk.
When caught, officers are suspended with half or three-quarters of their pay. To compound matters, the police sometimes fail to appear in court, resulting in the magistrate dismissing the case. And when they win their cases, the State has to pay them. The officers would return to work, and it’s back to square one, the prison authorities reveal.
What happens inside the prison walls tells an alarming story. It’s rogue officers, threats to life, drone-dropped contraband, and a deeply fractured justice system that many believe is now fuelling and not fighting crime.
‘Our lives don’t matter’
President of the Prison Officers’ Association Gerard Gordon doesn’t mince words.
“This crime syndicate, crime on the whole–the fact is that we have lost 32 officers in just about two decades,” he said. “That threat is always present, and it continues until the State intervenes in a positive way to address that particular occurrence.”
One officer has been living in a safe house for 13 years. Others have resigned, taken early retirement, or live with deep trauma. The casualties aren’t just the result of criminal threats, but officers tell of a system that continues to abandon its own.
“Because of (prisoner’s name called), a lot of officers have died. That is the belief. Whether it is real or not, that is the belief,” Gordon said. “We have been saying, in the prison, for a long time that our lives don’t matter.”
The sense of neglect, the officers believe, is deep.
“So while everybody running around, the DPP under threat, and this one under threat, they have their security detail. I am certain the Attorney General ain’t moving around by himself …”
Then came the stinging question from Gordon: “Are we living in an animal farm where some lives are more important than others?”
Murdered for food
The right to receive outside food may seem innocent, even humane. But inside the Maximum Security Prison (MSP), it’s a loaded issue. It is one tied to corruption, control, and even murder.
Gordon recalled how acting superintendent Wayne Jackson was gunned down outside his Malabar home on October 2, 2018, because he refused to allow food to come into Building 13 at MSP, a notorious wing where corruption had taken root.
“It’s food, you know … they kill Wayne Jackson for food,” he said.
Following Jackson’s killing, Gordon said he had to ask an intelligence agency during a meeting if they knew Jackson was a target: “And the whole room got silent.”
Gordon recalled a deep freeze inside one prison was being used to store raw meat brought in from outside. It was cooked for religious observances, but the volume was alarming.
“People bring in meat and whatnot that is stored in this specific deep freeze for people to get whatever meals are prepared.”
Inmates have shared meals of wild meat, curries, stews, and roti—dishes more fitting of a catered event than a correctional facility.
One disturbing memory stood out for Gordon.
“I remember a video, and I was so shocked. They’re boasting they’re eating wild meat.”
Between 2006 and 2007, a hacksaw blade was found in food. The warnings have been clear for years. Gordon said the association has long opposed the granting of certain items—mainly prepared meals and raw meat.
“I would say that outside diet is a big, big problem. I would have written the draft policy to change how we do visits. As it is now, anybody could come to the prison and visit. We need to have more control over our space. This is not a place that you operate free-handed. And, without thought, there are ramifications for things.”
Gordon lamented, “It’s almost as if we haven’t learnt. This is not a hotel.”
It’s not just officers under suspicion. Visitors have long played a role in the movement of banned items into prison.
Gordon described how money, marijuana, and cigarettes were found concealed in waistbands and hems of pants. Others were hidden inside slippers.
These smuggling methods are sophisticated but rarely caught. Enforcement is inconsistent.
Creativity becomes a threat
Inmates have found ways to explore their creativity in the most alarming ways.
Gordon shared how an inmate—through careful observation of a gate’s opening and closing—managed to carve a functioning wooden key.
“When we put the key in the lock, you know it worked.”
Officers also found a two-stroke engine inside a cell, crafted from Bristol board, slippers, newspapers, and bread.
“The engine had a cylinder block, head, and exhaust, everything …” Gordon said.
On the outside, it may seem like ingenuity. However, it’s a reminder of how the system enables manipulation, communication, and escape.
Up to 40 drone drops attempted daily
While some countries use drones to surveil prisons, in T&T, they’re being used to supply prisoners with contraband.
Gordon said up to 40 drone drops are attempted in a single day.
“We have the issue where sometimes you have 30 to 40 (drone) drops being attempted in one day. We get some, we don’t get others.”
Asked whether drones could deliver weapons or ammunition, he replied without hesitation: “Yes”.
While the prison system is challenged, the technology to prevent this already exists nearby.
“Piarco Airport has geofencing to stop drones entering their airspace. Why can’t we employ that sort of technology here?” Gordon asked.
Plots in jail cells
During a debate in Parliament on extending the State of Emergency (SoE), it was revealed that ten inmates from MSP had to be relocated to Teteron Barracks after a plot was uncovered to assassinate high-level government officials.
Shortly after, three drones were spotted infiltrating Staubles Bay and Teteron between Thursday and Saturday. The T&T Defence Force responded swiftly.
Gordon was blunt. “If you put marked gang leaders together for years, what do you think will happen? Ent they going to talk? Ent they going to realise the enemy of my enemy is my friend?”
The State, he said, created a space for them to organise.
“They’ve become masters of their own space.”
Justice delayed
But the issue isn’t only inside the prisons.
Gordon pointed out that three-quarters of T&T’s prison population is on remand, awaiting trial for years.
He asked, “When the SoE comes to an end in October, does it mean that the challenges for the prison service, all of a sudden, will magically go away?”
Gordon said there was a problem that nobody wants to address. “If people are being arrested, charged, and imprisoned, there must be a timeline to convict or set them free.”
The backlog of cases, endless delays, and indefinite detention are clear signs of institutional failure. Gordon believes that if left unaddressed, they will only deepen the violence and chaos that plague our prisons and our society.
A WhatsApp message was sent to Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander yesterday, on the concerns raised by Gordon, but he did not respond.
English (US) ·