PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – A magistrate has sentenced a man to 14 days simple imprisonment, after he called the E999 emergency hotline to threaten to kill both Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and Police Commissioner, Erla Harewood-Christopher.

Magistrate Alexander Prince, sitting at the Couva Court in Central Trinidad on Thursday, imposed the sentence on Ian Sookram after he was charged with misuse of the telephone, contrary to Section 106 (a) of the Summary Offences Act. He had threatened to cut off the heads of the prime minister and the top cop.

The court heard that Sookram, who pleaded guilty to the charge, had on November 25 this year, at about 1.39 am (local time) called the E999 emergency hotline and made the threats against Rowley and Harewood-Christopher.

The Central Trinidad resident was later arrested and charged for the offence of obscene language, to which he was also sentenced to 14 days simple imprisonment.

Both sentences are to run concurrently.

The court heard that in April, 2019, Sookram was also arrested and charged for threatening then commissioner Gary Griffith and his wife, Nicole Dyer-Griffith.

On those charges, Sookram was sentenced to 14 days hard labour for the threat and 14 days hard labour for wasteful employment of the police time.