Three officers from the Port-of-Spain Task Force (PoSTF) have been removed from “front line” duties, as an investigation has been launched into an incident involving a suspect who was holding a child in his arms while a group of officers attempted to detain him in Belmont this week.
The decision was confirmed by head of the TTPS Communications Unit, retired ACP Joanne Archie, yesterday.
The officers were said to have been relegated to desk duty, and it is expected this will continue until the investigation by the TTPS’ Professional Standards Bureau (PSB) is complete.
This means the officers will not be interfacing with the public and will not be part of the patrol roster for the capital city.
The incident occurred on Tuesday (December 13) in the vicinity of St Augustine Road and Gloster Link Road in Belmont.
The incident, which was caught on camera and later shared on social media, showed officers engaged in a verbal altercation with two suspects, following which one was man was arrested.
While the audio is not clear and does allow the listener to understand what triggered the incident or what exactly was being said through the interchange, a male officer is seen taking the child from the suspect’s arms and handing him over to a uniformed female officer.
Even as this was taking place, other uniformed officers were seen detaining the two men.
Seconds later, one officer is seen leading one of the suspects, who was handcuffed, towards a marked police vehicle, where he slams his head into the back windscreen, before opening the back lid and shoving him inside and slamming the lid.
One man has since been charged with disorderly behaviour, resisting arrest and obscene language.
He has, however, since retained an attorney an intends to initiate legal action against the TTPS.
The Police Complaints Authority (PCA) has also launched an investigation into the incident, which allegedly left the child involved with a minor injury.
