Bandit attacks Martin Joseph at his gated community home

Flashback: How Martin Joseph and Patrick Manning dealt with crime

The man whom Patrick Manning trusted to attack crime became a victim of crime Sunday when a bandit robbed him at his luxury home at Flastaff Hill, just outside of Port of Spain.

Former PNM national security minister Martin Joseph told local media the bandits “hogtied” and robbed him close to midnight on Sunday but did not hurt him. 

Jospeh lives in a secure gated community with 24/7 security. He said he was at home with his stepson when the gunman arrived. "I noticed a masked man, armed with a gun, had followed him into the house," he told reporters. 

“Upon entering the house the man announced it was a robbery and proceeded to ‘hogtie’ my stepson,” Joseph said, adding that he fought with the gunman and tried to get the weapon.
“But I too was ‘hogtied’, as the bandit proceeded to rob me and others in the house," he related. 

“The robber then made his way upstairs to the bedrooms and it was during that time I was able to untie myself, escape and call for help," the former minister said.

The St James Police arrived shortly after Joseph called for help but the bandit was already gone with Joseph's stepson's red Lancer sports car, which police found later abandoned but not damaged. 

He thanked the police for theiur quick response and added, "I hope the perpetrator will be brought to justice as soon as possible. 

"It again shows the need for the entire country to work at all levels in the fight against crime to recognise that the war against the criminals will not be easily won but is one requiring hard work, dedicated action from law enforcement and parents taking responsibility in the way they raise their children.” 

Joseph was National Security Minister in the Manning administration from 2003 to 2010. Joseph's political colleague was "horrified" to hear of the attack. "In my 21 years of public life I have never heard of a home invasion at Flagstaff," he said, adding an irrelevant political quip: "It means the criminals aren’t afraid of (Jack) Warner." he added.