PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad — The Media Association of Trinidad and Tobago (MATT) has expressed alarm at a police search of the Trinidad Express newsroom here yesterday.

The incident comes on the heels of last Sunday’s story headlined ‘Cop in $2m cheque probe’ which outlined suspicious deposits into bank accounts of acting police commissioner Irwin Hackshaw.

According to the Daily Express, during yesterday afternoon’s incident, the office of the editor-in-chief was searched after a seven-man police team presented a warrant to obtain evidence of the source of Sunday’s article.

The paper remains adamant that its sources will not be revealed and also expressed concern that the search was conducted under the watch of the acting police chief who is the subject of the investigative report which triggered the raid.

The MATT said the incident highlights the urgent need for whistleblower legislation.

Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith, who is not in the country, yesterday alluded to concerns about the “optics” but said he was unaware of the operation and it was therefore difficult for him to comment.

And in a statement last night, Minister of National Security Stuart Young, who indicated that he too had not been briefed on the search, said he would await an update.

He stressed his belief in the “protection of freedom of the press as well as the principle of media responsibility” and added that he would not condone a breach of either.