The Commanding Officer of the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard (TTCG) has been ordered to present eight Venezuelan crew members to the Port-of-Spain Supreme Court on Thursday.
According to the Writ of Habeas Corpus filed by the men’s attorney Kelston Pope, the Commanding Officer has to produce them before Justice Margaret Mohammed in Courtroom POS 06 at 10.30 am.
Pope said the writ was served on the Coast Guard on Tuesday afternoon.
The action was taken after the Coast Guard failed to respond to a pre-action protocol letter sent on Sunday requesting the reasons why the men were being detained and to give details regarding the location and circumstances surrounding the sinking of the vessels.
Pope complained that he has not been able to speak with his clients and up to yesterday did not know what was happening with them.
The men were aboard two vessels Frialy and El Cufi sailing to Trinidad to sell over 4,000 kilogrammes of copper when they were intercepted by Coast Guard just before they docked at the Cedros Port on Friday.
The vessels were being conveyed by the Coast Guard to Staubles Bay when they sank 15 nautical miles west of Point Lisas.
Questions were raised as to why the vessels were detained since the Coast Guard, Customs and Excise and Immigration Department received the required 24-hour advance notice of the vessel’s arrival, as well as the relevant documents.
The Coast Guard, however, said the vessels were intercepted because the exportation of copper from Venezuela is illegal.
“The vessels were in possession of copper, with intent to trade. The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela has indicated that the exportation of copper from Venezuela is illegal and therefore Venezuelan vessels with this item onboard will be investigated accordingly,” said Public Affairs Officer Leu Kerron Valere.
He said the vessels were directed to Staubles Bay to “safely and effectively conduct processing and assessment of vessel, documentation, and personnel.”
However, he did not provide details about how the boats sank.
The Coast Guard said the men would have been handed over to Immigration officials.