Police search PSA offices

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Mark Bassant

A team of police officers entered the Public Service Association headquarters on Abercromby Street, in Port-of-Spain, yesterday linked possibly to two ongoing police investigations.

Sources told Guardian Media that the team of officers, who had a document in their possession, made checks with the reception before later going up to another floor of the building.

Guardian Media understands that the officers attached to the Anti-Corruption Bureau(ACIB) conducted a brief search of some of the offices on that floor but did not seize anything.

PSA President Watson Duke was not at the office when the search was conducted shortly after 10.20 am.

One week ago, an investigation on CNC3’s Unspun revealed that Duke had received a half a million-dollar pension payment from the PSA in 2019.

Duke had announced he was resigning from the PSA at that time– but later reneged on that promise and ran for another term as president.

He won that contentious election in which several of the contesting parties have now filed a court action surrounding the elections.

The pension payment, according to the PSA Act Section 102, indicates that an officer of the PSA can only receive their pension or any other form of payment when they remit office. But Duke never did.

Following the Unspun investigation, Duke, in a video on Monday online, admitted to taking the money.

“I told my people I am looking to resign, but you know what they have to give me my pension after I got my pension a man can change his mind eh. I decided I will change my mind and I did that without any apology,” Duke had said then.

Duke had said during the online stream that he was not afraid of any police investigation and said that his lawyers were ready and waiting.

“I wanted my money. I got my money, and they say it is not my money. Well Fraud Squad have to come to me, and I tell them when they come, step properly. Bring all yuh case and I will deal with that.”

An ongoing police investigation into WASA may have prompted the search, but sources strongly believe it was more closely related to the pension payment.

Sources told Guardian Media that Duke contacted his lawyers sometime yesterday and believe it may have been connected to the police search yesterday.