THE Court of Appeal has ruled that Digicel Trinidad and Tobago Ltd trespassed on private property in Sangre Grande when it erected a cell tower almost two decades ago.

On September 23, Justices of Appeal Nolan Bereaux, Mark Mohammed and Geoffrey Henderson overturned a 2021 judgment of the High Court that had dismissed the claim. The ruling awards possession of the disputed site to the estate of the late Surajdai Rawti, now represented by her stepson, Harry Joseph.

Justice Bereaux, who delivered the unanimous ruling, found that the trial judge erred in accepting Digicel’s expert evidence over that of the estate’s surveyor. The judges determined that the tower stood on Rawti’s parcel of land as conveyed in a 1960 deed, making Digicel liable for trespass throughout the period the tower remained.