Woman in Trinidad charged for allegedly using bad cheques to buy Carnival fete tickets

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC -The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) Tuesday said that a woman has been granted TT$10,000 bail after she allegedly issued two bad cheques to purchase tickets for carnival fetes.

The police said that the cheques totalling TT$45,500 were not honoured by the bank and that, as a result, the woman appeared before the San Fernando High Court on charges of obtaining goods by false pretences.

The TTPS said that the woman, Satie Samaroo, was charged with obtaining goods valued at TT$34,500 by false pretences and obtaining goods valued at TT$11,000 by false pretences when she appeared before the court on Monday.

She was granted bail, and the matter was postponed to June 24 this year for a status hearing.

The police said that the operations manager at a San Fernando company on the southwestern coast of the country reported that in July 2025, during the period January 23 and January 24 that year, a woman purchased two packages valued at TT$34,500 and 15 party tickets valued at TT$11,000 for a Carnival event.

“Payment was allegedly effected by two cheques, which were accepted as good and valid, and the packages and tickets were handed over to the woman. The cheques were deposited into the company’s bank account, but both were returned dishonoured with the notation “Account closed since 2021.”

The police said that several attempts by the company to have the woman honour the payment proved futile and a report was subsequently made to the police.

They said that following investigations, an exercise was conducted on January 22 this year, leading to the arrest of Samaroo.

“The Fraud Squad is reminding business owners and vendors to verify the authenticity of cheques with their bankers before parting with their goods, or consider switching to electronic forms of payment, if the person writing the cheque is not known to you or not a regular customer,” the TTPS said in a statement.

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