Two men and a woman were arrested by police with a gun after they tried extorting money from a woman in Chaguanas on Friday afternoon.
Police said officers of the Chaguanas CID and the Chaguanas Foot Patrol Team received a report that criminals were demanding money from residents.
The woman arranged to pay $600,000 to the extortionists and agreed to meet with them to hand over the cash near the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) on the Chaguanas Main Road.
The officers took up positions on the street and confronted the trio, who arrived to take the money.
One of the suspects, a 44-year-old security guard, was found with a Glock-19 pistol with 15 rounds of ammunition, which belongs to the security company he works for.
The trio is expected to be questioned and charged.
The exercise was led by Snr Supt Simon, Supt Gyan, ASP Dipchand, Insp Sylvan, and field operations from acting Sgt Baboolal.
Meanwhile, Mayaro MP Rushton Paray raised concerns over a wave of extortion cases where businessmen are considering closing down their operations.
Paray also called for the creation of a special police unit dedicated specifically to investigating and eradicating “protection rackets.”
During a police media briefing in St Augustine on Thursday, the head of the North-Central Division, Snr Supt Richard Smith, said there were trends of criminals demanding money from businesses and encouraged victims to come forward and report their experiences to the police.