A 73-year-old businesswoman abducted from her home in San Juan on Wednesday night was rescued within hours following a multi-agency operation.
Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro confirmed on Thursday morning that Tara Poliah was rescued at sea, as her captors attempted to transport her to Venezuela.
He revealed that seven suspects—six Venezuelan nationals and one Trinidadian—were arrested after the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard intercepted the vessel around midnight.
The Commissioner said Ms. Poliah was unharmed and is in good health.
Police say the victim was accosted in the garage of her home along Don Miguel Road on Wednesday evening and forcibly placed into a white Nissan wagon.
Commissioner Guevarro said intelligence-led teams from the TTPS and partner agencies tracked the suspects’ movements from land to sea.
He described the operation as a critical strike against organised criminal networks operating across borders.
He said “Around midnight, the kidnappers placed the victim aboard a vessel in an attempt to take her to Venezuela, but this vessel was intercepted by members of the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard. Seven suspects – six Venezuelan nationals, and one Trinidadian – were arrested, and Miss Poliah was rescued safely and is in good health. The TTPS understands the concern that incidents of this nature create, and I want to reassure the national community that your police service is vigilant, coordinated, and fully capable of responding to serious threats.”
Commissioner Guevarro praised the multi-agency operation.
“I want to reassure you that our Intelligence and Operational Units have been actively monitoring cross-border criminal activity, and I want to state that this operation represents a major breakthrough in dismantling an organised criminal network who was hell-bent on carrying out cross-border kidnappings. The speed, precision, and professionalism displayed in this rescue demonstrates that Trinidad and Tobago’s law enforcement agencies are prepared, united, and resolute in protecting our citizens.”