Port-of-Spain: Authorities in Trinidad have announced that they have charged 11 people in last year's killing of prominent prosecutor and former senator Dana Seetahal.
Deputy Police Chief Glen Hackett made the announcement yesterday during a televised address in which he apologized to her family for withholding information, saying it was necessary.
Seetahal was fatally shot in May 2014 after suspects in two cars opened fire after cutting off her vehicle in Trinidad's capital. Police said it appeared to be a professional hit. At least 15 shells were found at the scene in the residential Woodbrook neighborhood.
"It stands out as the most challenging case I've ever worked on," Hackett said, adding that international law enforcement agencies helped local authorities. He declined to name the agencies.
Hackett declined to comment on a potential motive, saying the evidence would be presented in court. The suspects are scheduled to appear in court tomorrow.
Among those charged is Rajaee Ali, son of one of the leaders of Jamaat al Muslimeen, an Islamic group that organized a violent coup attempt nearly 25 years ago. Rajaee previously told reporters that he was not involved in Seetahal's killing.
Seetahal was formerly an independent senator and an assistant solicitor general. The island's attorney general at the time said Trinidad's legal profession had lost a titan.
Hackett's announcement comes a day after an inmate and a police officer were killed following a violent prison outbreak in Port-of-Spain. Two of the three inmates who escaped remain at large.
The twin-island nation of Trinidad & Tobago is one of the most prosperous nations in the Caribbean because of natural gas and oil reserves, but it also has struggled with a high violence rate fueled by drug trafficking.
