Lawyer claims police fabricated death threat linked to Rajaee Ali case

Lawyers representing alleged gang leader Rajaee Ali have accused the police of fabricating a purported death threat against them.

Attorney Keron Ramkhalwhan, of Juris X Chambers, made the allegation in a press release issued a short while ago.

Ramkhalwhan claimed that last week he was visited by officers assigned to the Special Intelligence Unit (SIU), who informed him that they had received “intelligence” over an alleged threat to his life originating from Ali.

“Based on this interaction, it was suggested that I reconsider my professional engagement in this matter and take security measures for my protection,” Ramkhalwhan said.

Denying the claim of the death threat, Ramkhalwhan noted that he and his colleague were retained to represent Ali in a legal challenge over a decision to transfer him from the Maximum Security Prison in Arouca to the Teteron Barracks in Chaguaramas as part of the ongoing State of Emergency (SoE).

“I wish to state in clear terms that the information disseminated publicly by the senior police official and the Commissioner of Police- that Rajaee Ali has threatened his attorneys from a military base-is false and misleading,” he said.

“At no point have I, nor my instructing attorney Anwar Hosein, been threatened by anyone,” he added.

He pointed out that he has an ethical responsibility as a lawyer to provide robust legal representation to his clients.

He questioned whether the actions of the police in publicising the purported threat was an attempt to have him withdraw from representing Ali.

“If the police are willing to adopt and propagate this false narrative of threats against Rahaee Ali as a means to impede effective legal representation, I must ask: how far will they go to silence lawyers and hinder access to justice in this country?” Ramkhalwhan said.

“This situation raises serious questions about the respect for legal rights and the independence of legal practitioners in T&T,” he added.

Ali and 10 men are currently awaiting trial for murdering Senior Counsel Dana Seetahal in 2014.