KEVON [email protected]
Businesses that provide vehicle registration plates may be guilty of unintentionally assisting in crime, says graphic designer Videsh “Roddy” Singh. With a call for everyone to do his or her part in stopping criminals, Singh of Extreme Effect Graphics & Signage in Sangre Grande, says anyone requiring a number plate from him must provide a certified copy of their vehicle ownership, a driver’s permit and an identification card.
Singh said that before committing crimes, criminals sometimes purchase plates with fake registration numbers.
He told Guardian Media that criminals know it would be difficult for the police to track bogus plates.
He believes this new policy will assist the police. He said he reached out to several signage businesses in Sangre Grande and Arima, and they are willing to adopt this measure. He hopes others across T&T will do the same. “We are part of society, and this is our field; it is making license plates and doing graphics. When I saw the story that Andrea’s kidnappers had a fake license plate, I said that we are responsible in a way. The design of this system is that anyone can come into a graphic shop and get a license plate without any identification,” Singh said. There is no law regulating the sale of registration plates, and Singh says anyone with a signage business can sell plates. He pointed out that even when motorists apply for an insurance certificate, they must show identification and ownership documents. He posted the new policy on his company’s Facebook page, which got over 100,000 views in 24 hours, with mostly positive feedback. Singh said Andrea’s death was just one of many but was the breaking point for citizens. “Everyone was traumatised because everyone was hoping for the best. It was the breaking point. Everyone has to make a change, and as the Commissioner (of Police) always say, people, have to take a stand. It is our stand.”|
