BY FRANCIS JOSEPH
Today – Wednesday – marks four months since Joshua Samaroo was fatally shot by police and his girlfriend, Kaia Sealey was wounded and left paralyzed.
Finally, the police investigation into the incident is over and the file is heading to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
The question for the DPP is whether charges would be laid or whether the matter would be sent for a Coroner’s Inquest.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) said as part of the investigative process, several exhibits were submitted to the Forensic Science Centre, Federation Park, for analysis. That report was received on Tuesday.
On January 20, Samaroo, 31, and Sealy, 24, were shot multiple times at the corner of Bassie Street Extension and DookieÂsingh Street, St Augustine, after an alleged attempt to elude the police, ended when their vehicle crashed into a drain.
Police said they had attempted to stop the couple’s vehicle in Maloney, but they sped off, prompting a dramatic chase.
Video footage from a nearby building showed Samaroo holding his hands outside of the car when officers opened fire. Sealy, who was a front seat passenger, was struck multiple times as well.
Police transported the wounded couple to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mt Hope, where Samaroo was pronounced dead. According to reports, Sealy was partially paralyzed, having lost her ability to walk following the incident.
The latest report is that she has gone abroad for further treatment.
The shooting led to several protests by Ârelatives of Samaroo and friends of Sealy who called for the police officers involved in the shooting to be charged. The protests have continued.
