PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – The Trinidad and Tobago government says an individual who gained “unauthorised” access to the head office of the Ministry of Finance was probably on a mission to cause “damage and destruction of important documents and records at the Ministry”.
The twin tower budlings of the Ministry of Finance (File Photo)In a statement issued late Sunday, the Ministry of Finance said that the individual had on April 30 gained “unauthorised access to the top floor” of the building “by pretending to be a member of an exterior building cleaning team.
“Suspicion arose later in the day when CCTV technicians and maintenance staff detected serious water leakage at the top levels of the Ministry of Finance building, leading to interception and detention of the individual.
“When searched, a gauge and valve taken from a pump line were found on his person, together with other items of a suspicious nature. The individual was subsequently charged by the police with malicious damage and remanded into custody.”
The ministry said that an assessment conducted by the technical staff of the Ministry and its specialist contractors revealed significant risks due the actions of this individual.
“If he had not been caught, and the effects of his actions not detected early enough, the result would have included: water tanks running dry, resulting in a building shutdown. The chillers for the air-conditioning system at the Ministry of Finance malfunctioning, again leading to a building shutdown.
“ Water pouring into the electrical systems at the Ministry of Finance, again leading to a building shutdown. General chaos and confusion and evacuation of the Ministry of Finance, during which other unauthorised individuals could have engaged in malicious acts. Damage and destruction of important documents and records at the Ministry.”
The statement gave no reason behind the action of the unnamed individual.
In recent weeks, the Ministry of Finance has been embroiled in a controversy involving the national public accounts.
