Sandy had no knowledge about foreigners who were detained in TT since June

Law enforcement personnel are investigating to determine if the presence of two illegal aliens in Trinidad since June this year was in any way connected to the plot to assassinate the prime minister.

National Security Minister John Sandy made that comment Monday in response to questions from reporters about two people who entered the country on bogus Israeli passports. They were detained by officials on June when they tried to board a caribbean Airlines (CAL) flight to Toronto.

According to a report in the Sunday Guardian the two people, identified as Robert Ochakovsky and Anastasia Kurakin, escaped on November 20th. It's not clear if they are in hiding or whether they have fled the country.

They arrived in Trinidad on June 6 from St Maarten. The authorities there had tipped off their local counterparts, who moved against the two illegal visitors and handed them over to CAL security.

The paper reported that the airline was responsible for the cost of accomodation and meals for the two at a hotel near the Piarco International Airport.

Speaking about the matter at a media conference Monday, Sandy stated that he did not have any prior knowledge about this matter.

"I only leant of it on Sunday and when I spoke to the Chief Immigration Officer and he indicated to me that there were some discussions between the Immigration Department and CAL and for some reason CAL kept them there," he said.

The minister told reporters he has asked the immigration chief to provide information on "whether there are any others in Trinidad and Tobago that we don't know about." He said he expects an urgent report on the matter.