MINISTER of National Security Fitzgerald Hinds said on June 25 that in six years, the police had seized almost 5,000 illicit firearms and 100,000 illicit bullets.
He spoke in the Senate in reply to a listed question from Independent Senator Dr Paul Richards on the number of illegal firearms discovered, plus the number of suspects arrested and charged for possession.
Hinds said the total seized by the police was 4,956 firearms and 104,737 rounds of ammunition.
Richards, in a supplemental question, asked if the "real problem" was illegal firearms entering Trinidad and Tobago.
Hinds replied, "I would say, in response to that, firearms are the problem. While illegal firearms are so properly described, legal firearms – meaning firearms that are lawfully in the possession of persons authorised under the law – have also become, can also become, and are known to have become abused, misused in terms of illegal conduct and illegal activity."
He said this was known as divergence.
"So for me, for us, firearms are the real danger.
"We have had state firearms issued to law-enforcement personnel that have been used in very severe criminal activity. So for me, we do have a problem."
He said it was now no surprise that violence involving firearms in the region has been described as a "public health concern."
Richards asked if the police had challenges in identifying individuals who import illegal guns.
Hinds said yes.
"There are ongoing inquiries as we speak, because this is a present and burgeoning problem.
"Persons have been arrested and charged, of course, and there are ongoing inquiries supported by intelligence, supported by tracing, supported by other techniques, in order to detect them, in order to rid the society of them, making here safer for all of our citizens and our wonderful visitors."
Hinds gave the number of firearms and bullets seized for each year from 2018-2014.
These were:
- 2018 – 988 firearms, 16,308 bullets
- 2019 – 888 firearms, 4,368 bullets
- 2020 – 755 firearms, 37,695 bullets
- 2021 – 681 firearms, 12,850 bullets
- 2022 – 723 firearms, 11,022 bullets
- 2023 – 709 firearms, 19,804 bullets
- 2024 – 232 firearms , 2,688 bullets
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