Police officers, especially those investigating the e-mail probe, are demoralised and have expressed “grave concerns” over statements about possible breaches of privacy and lack of trust in the Police Service. And because of such views and lack of co-operation in the handing over of electronic devices, the scope of the work of the investigators has been limited.
Lead investigator Deputy Police Commissioner Mervyn Richardson made these statement yesterday in an interview on Inspirational Radio 730 AM, sister station of the T&T Guardian. “Everybody could now say we don’t trust the police,” he said. “It is very painful, as a senior officer, because now we have to schedule meetings with police officers to give them a sense of comfort, because officers are saying point blank, ‘Ok, nobody trust us. We ent good. We can’t handle our own thing.’
“And mind you, we have trained officers who are at this time giving evidence in court relative to phones and relative to other devices. What does it say to those matters that are presently before the court?” Richardson asked.
Earlier this week Pamela Elder, SC, lawyer for Attorney General Anand Ramlogan and Minister of Local Government and Works and Infrastructure Suruj Rambachan, said her clients had refused to hand over their computers and other devices to the police because they feared a breach of their constitutional right to privacy. Elder added that because Ramlogan and Rambachan were voluntarily assisting the police, they were not obligated to hand over their computers, cellphones or any other electronic devices the police might request.
Speaking at a post-Cabinet news briefing on Thursday, Ramlogan said Elder had advised him not to hand over his devices on the basis of an absence of defined protocol by the police. Only Gary Griffith, security adviser to Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, has willingly handed over his BlackBerry cell phone and computer to the police.
Saying he has been receiving several calls from his charges, Richardson added, “Since yesterday (Thursday) officers have been demoralised and have been calling me and other senior officers and expressing grave concern, because the same officers that we saying that we don’t trust them and we have no confidence in and things like that—is the same officers who protecting people in very high places.
“So what they are saying is, ‘We do not trust them with our phones but we trust them with our lives,’” Richardson added. Richardson said he wanted to present the facts relating to the directive given to the Police Service by Prime Minister Kamal Persad-Bissessar. “We have been asked by the prime minister to investigate the matter. In her instructions to us she said, ‘Use the law and do what is necessary to get to the root of this situation.’
“We have done no more or no less. “We are at the point that in order to progress we must seek the devices of persons and this is not targeting anyone,” Richardson said. He denied that investigators were operating on the premise of guilt, saying there were no “preconceived notions.” “It is an investigation, and to that extent we have been following clear guidelines and principles that we apply in everything.”
He said if other people were to hand over their devices, the items would be treated like any other piece of evidence which would be carefully handled by Crime Scene Investigations (CSI) officers. “Whenever or if ever we should get those devices that are being requested, it would be packaged as normal, like how we would do any other bit of evidence.
“We have trained CSI officers, so it’s not as if I am dealing with that. We have trained police officers who do the packaging and labelling. Signatures are affixed and sealed in tamper-proof bags,” Richardson said. More than that, he said, the Police Service had been around for “over 400 years” and had dealt with matters of all types.
“It is amazing that after 400 years of existence and 50 years of Independence we now hearing, ‘We don’t trust the Police Service.’ Richardson said he personally was unfazed by the negative comments, adding that he had been a police officer for many years and took it all in stride.
Law must be for all
Regarding the issue of phone and electronic devices being voluntarily handed over Richardson said officers were of the view that people were operating “in good faith.” “We thought we were operating in good faith and nobody have anything to hide and all is above board. “You talking about professional people, high office holders. You not talking about the man on priority bus route or the man who selling doubles or fish by the road,” Richardson said.
The law therefore, he added, must be for all. “There is a presumption the law must be equal and everyone must have an equal right and place before the law. “We recognise the point is high office holders and the highest amount of respect is being afforded to this investigation but we hearing also the police moving too slow and when the police trying to get the matter forward we hearing, ‘We don’t trust you. We hearing we incompetent. So how can we go forward, how can we end it?” Richardson questioned.
On the issue of bringing a foreigner Richardson referred to former police commissioner Dwayne Gibbs and deputy police commissioner Jack Ewatski who demitted office. “These are contradictions I cannot explain. Probably someone with more intellectual capacity might be able to do so.”
No word yet from Google
Regarding whether a response has been had from Google, Richardson said to date the police had received none. Richardson said investigators have approached Google for assistance via the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLAT) and have also written independently. He, however, did not want to comment on what specifically was requested by the police. Up to late yesterday investigators had not received a response from Google.