Trinidad and Tobago declares Maloney first closed area under Special Operations Act
The Maloney Buildings Housing Development became Trinidad and Tobago's first community declared a closed area, imposing a nightly curfew from 9 pm to 5 am.
Nightly curfew imposed on Maloney after gang violence caught on viral video
The Maloney Buildings Housing Development along the East West Corridor in Trinidad became the first community declared a closed area under the country's Special Operations Act, 2026, following a viral video showing residents — including women and children — fleeing gunfire in a car park. Thestkittsnevisobserver.com reports that Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro announced the measure on Wednesday, stating he was prepared to use every tool at his disposal.
Residents in the designated zone are now subject to a nightly curfew running from 9:00 pm to 5:00 am local time. The declaration was formalised by President Christine Kangaloo through Legal Notice No. 847, dated November 10, while a companion order, Legal Notice No. 848, imposed the curfew itself.
"If people behave themselves, that is one piece of legislation I had in my toolkit that I wished I did not have to use," Guevarro told reporters. "Honestly, I wished I did not have to use it, but just know, I am prepared to use it."
Guevarro said he was sent the viral social media footage on Monday morning — a recording allegedly taken inside the Maloney building showing children forced to duck and run for cover. "As Commissioner of Police, I found that footage deeply disturbing," he said, adding that he immediately contacted Senior Superintendent Avalon Frank, the Divisional Commander for the area, and directed that action be taken at once.
A series of law enforcement operations followed using traditional policing methods in an attempt to identify offenders, recover firearms, and restore public safety. Despite those efforts, intelligence indicated the situation was deteriorating, with gangs using the Maloney development as a base of refuge. Guevarro said the incidents were linked to historical gang conflicts that had previously triggered fatal reprisals and prolonged cycles of violence.
"Most concerning to me was the fact that innocent citizens were being caught in the crossfire," Guevarro said. "The video which circulated nationally and internationally was not merely a recording of a criminal act. It was a visual representation of ordinary citizens, law-abiding citizens being terrorised. It showed women running for cover, showed little children fleeing in panic and it showed a community being held hostage by criminality."
Opposition legislator Camille Robinson-Regis, member of Parliament for the Maloney area, criticised the Kamla Persad-Bissessar government over what she described as a failure to adequately inform affected residents. "Without a clear communication to residents, Maloney is now under lockdown, leaving law-abiding citizens frightened, confused and unsure whether they need permits simply to get home," Robinson-Regis said. She added that she had received calls from residents in a state of panic and that even police officers reportedly lacked clear information on the process.
Guevarro pushed back on that assessment, saying that once the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service received clearance to proceed, officers used a loudspeaker mounted on a police vehicle to announce the measure within the community. "Not everyone has a television, and even though we live in a modern area, not everybody has access to a phone like you and the internet," he said. He added that the authorities deliberately chose not to broadcast the announcement beyond the community, so that individuals outside the area — particularly those connected to criminal networks — would not know to avoid it. "I want you to come. Come into my palace, said the spider to the fly," Guevarro said.
The Commissioner confirmed that two micro police units have been established at both ends of Maloney to serve as liaison centres for the community, with additional police officers and members of the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force stationed around the area. Residents are free to move about during daylight hours; the curfew applies only at night. Those entering or leaving the community during curfew hours are subject to checks by police.
Under Section 11 of the Special Operations Act, the President may declare a policing district a closed area where there are reasonable grounds to believe that public safety and peace are threatened by escalating violent crime, including murders, shootings, kidnappings, or gang-related activity. The legislation also cites the prevalence of illegal firearms, ammunition, and explosives, as well as gang control or intimidation of communities, as valid grounds for such a declaration. In the case of Maloney — which falls under Policing District Two — the President was satisfied on reasonable grounds that public safety and peace within the area were threatened.
Guevarro said that immediately following the proclamation of the legislation, senior police officers were sent for refresher training in human rights and all other core areas identified in the act, with additional personnel currently undergoing the same training at the Police Academy.
Source: Google News KN — Crime