AN employee of the Ministry of Agriculture has been charged for misbehaviour in public office.
A release from the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) on Friday stated that and land enforcement officer attached to the Office of the Commissioner of State Lands, Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries, was expected to appear at the Arima Magistrates’ Court on Friday, charged with misbehaviour in public office.
Mahendardath Jaikaran, 51, was charged with two counts of misbehaviour in public office on Thursday, following advice received from Director of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard SC.
According to a police report, sometime in November 2021, a letter was allegedly forged that granted two persons permission to build a tilapia fishing pond on state lands at Wallerfield.
On March 11, 2022, a party of officers conducted enquiries and executed a search warrant at the home of an employee of the Ministry of Agriculture.
Several forged Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries, Land Management Division and Commissioner of State Lands letters were allegedly found and seized at the residence.
Jaikaran was subsequently arrested, in connection with the matter.
Enquiries were supervised by Snr Supt Deryck Walker and included the Anti-Corruption Investigations Bureau (ACIB), Supt Avinash Singh, Insp Bryon Daniel (Legal Officer), Insp Alicia Mc Millan, Sgt Phillip, Cpl Sealey, Cpl Maharaj, PC Subran and WPC Ramdeo.
Another employee of the Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries, Robert Mohammed, was charged with forgery on March 27, 2022.
