Moonilal worried that criminals will walk free because of Sando fire

Opposition East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal has expressed concern about the loss of vital evidence in this week's fire at the San Fernando police station, saying Trinidad and Tobago is facing a "frightening reality", since murderers, kidnappers and other criminals could go free because the evidence to prosecute them has been destroyed.

Moonilal was speaking in Parliament in the debate on a bill to give legal effect to electronic documents, records and signatures.

He questioned the Government's ability to store electronic data, given the manner in which the physical evidence that was stored at the San Fernando Police Station had been destroyed.

Hundreds of criminal cases are now at risk, including murder cases, because of the loss the critical evidence. The building that burned was condemned by the city of San Fernando three years ago.

"We now have the alarming and frightening reality of bandits, murderers, kidnappers, robbers being discharged, released because there is no evidence available to prosecute," Moonilal said.

"I am told that that building that was destroyed by fire housed the property room, the property keeper's room where they stored exhibits, narcotics, documents, arms, ammunition to be used in criminal proceedings at the courts and this is storage of hard physical evidence," Moonilal said.

Moonilal used the fire to raise serious questions about the ability of the government to gather and store electronic data as required in the bill under debate. "So, when you cannot provide for the storage of physical material, what storage you providing for electronic data which is more difficult and supremely complex to think about storage?" Moonilal asked.