PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – A pastor is due to return to court on January 10 after he was granted TT$900 000 (One Tt dollar=USS$0.16 cents) bail on Wednesday on charges of kidnapping, false imprisonment and trafficking in persons after law enforcement officials had raised his Transformed Life Ministry Church last October and “rescued” more than 69 people.
Pastor Glen Awong and one of his employees, Indra Jaggernath, appeared before Magistrate Cheron Raphael in the Arima Magistrate’s First Court, east of here. Jaggernath has been granted TT$300 000 bail and will also return to court on January 10.
They have been jointly charged with keeping people under exploitative conditions, contrary to the Trafficking against Persons Act.
Awong was also charged with kidnapping and false imprisonment. All charges were laid indictable.
During the court session, attorney Wayne Sturge, who is representing Jaggernath, asked reporter Mark Bassant to leave a court saying that the journalist, who was reporting on the hearing was privy to information that could be used as evidence, and called on him to leave.
“I am also asking on him to not report on anything he would have heard while sitting in the court,” Sturge said, adding that his client had no prior convictions and had been taken to hospital for treatment on two occasions since her arrest on Tuesday.
Awong’s attorney Darren Mitchell said his client had no pending matters before the court and had strong ties to his community through his rehabilitation work as a pastor.
Awong and his wife had surrendered to police on Monday. The wife was released without any charges being laid against here.
On October 8 last year, the Special Operations Response Team (SORT) headed by Police Commissioner Gary Griffith went to Awong’s “rehab centre,” where police said they said they rescued 69 people, some naked and locked in cages. Those “rescued” were between the ages 19 to 70 years old.
Awong was charged with kidnapping a man, as well as false imprisonment and trafficking of persons between January 30 to July 2019. (CMC)
