The Trinidad and Tobago government has discontinued an appeal against a High Court ruling regarding the detention and return of firearm dealer, Brent Thomas, from Barbados in 2022.
Attorney General John Jeremie, SC, said the state is discounting the appeal of a 2023 High Court ruling that found the detention and the return of Thomas from Barbados as “unlawful”.
In a September 16, 2025 letter to Thomas’s attorneys, Jeremie apologised for the ordeal, indicating a willingness to negotiate damages.
“It is the State’s intention to enter into good faith negotiations with Mr Thomas and Specialist Shooters Training Centre Limited regarding constitutional damages and costs both in the High Court and Court of Appeal, in recognition of the violations found by the High Court.
“On behalf of the State, I apologise for the ordeal that Mr Thomas has endured and any reputational damage caused by these proceedings, which the High Court has now definitively found to constitute an abuse of process,” Jeremie wrote.
The letter referenced the High Court judgment of Justice Devindra Rampersad, delivered on April 25, 2023, which declared that all search warrants executed against Thomas and his company, Specialist Shooters Training Centre, were unconstitutional.
The judge also found Thomas’s arrest, detention and forcible removal from Barbados constituted a gross abuse of power, permanently stayed all criminal proceedings against him, and awarded constitutional damages.
“Upon careful consideration of the circumstances surrounding these proceedings and the findings of the High Court, I have decided to respectfully discontinue the State’s appeal,” Jeremie wrote, adding that he has instructed the Solicitor General to notify the Court of Appeal of his decision .
Following Justice Rampersad’s ruling, the state filed two appeals in the name of the Attorney General and a separate appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions. They were argued before Justices of Appeal Prakash Moosai, Charmaine Pemberton and Mira Dean-Armorer on July 24, 2024, with the court reserved its ruling.
During the July hearing, King Counsel, Peter Knox, the lead attorney for the state, conceded Thomas’s arrest in Barbados was unlawful, admitting the process should have followed extradition procedures.
However, he argued the High Court went too far by staying criminal charges, which included possession of prohibited weapons.
Thomas’s legal team, led by Senior Counsel Fyard Hosein, maintained that the police acted in bad faith and that the businessman had valid permits for the imported firearms and grenades, many of which were purchased by the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service and the Defence Force.
Justice Rampersad was expected to determine the quantum of damages, which was expected to be substantial. Meanwhile, Thomas has also pursued legal action in Barbados, seeking details on who authorised his detention and return.
Thomas was en route to visit his cardiologist in the US, stopping over in Barbados when he was detained at his hotel on October 5 2022, handcuffed and handed over to three officers assigned to Trinidad and Tobago Police Service’s Professional Standards Bureau on the tarmac of Grantley Adams International Airport.
In a ministerial statement to the House of Assembly in Barbados on May 9, 2023, Barbados Attorney General, Dale Marshall, said that no request had been made for Thomas’ extradition, even though Barbados has an Extradition Act which applies to a large number of criminal offences, including firearm and other offences for which the warrants of arrest for Thomas were issued.
“I am satisfied that the actions of the Barbados Police Service have fallen somewhat short of applicable legal norms, such as acting under an extradition request. I, however, cannot associate myself with the description of the actions of the Barbados Police officers as an abduction or as has elsewhere been described as a kidnapping.
“To the extent that there may be any legal liability attached to the actions of the Barbados Police Service officers, I can assure you that the Government of Barbados will abide by the law and fully respect any decisions of the law courts,” Marshall said.
The attorney for the Attorney General, Roger Forde SC wrote to Thomas advising that the Barbadian authorities accepted liability based on the senior counsel’s advice.
“I have advised my client that the State of Barbados should accept liability in respect of the claim for breach of Section 18 of the Constitution of Barbados,” the correspondence stated.
Section 18 of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution of Barbados guarantees the right to a fair hearing and protection of the law. (CMC)
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