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A HIGH Court judge has issued a directive to the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS), demanding that they justify the continued detention of a female suspect held in connection with the kidnapping of Jankie Satie Karim. Justice Karen Reid, presiding over a virtual hearing earlier in the day, issued a writ of habeas corpus requiring the suspect to be presented before the court by 5 p.m.

The legal challenge to the woman's detention was mounted by her attorneys, Keron Ramkhalwan, Shalini Sankar, and Anwar Hosein, who argue that their client has been unlawfully held without charge for an unreasonable period.

They contend that the police have exceeded the legal 72-hour limit for pre-charge detention and have failed to justify her custody "minute by minute," as required by established case law.